


Love as Red as Blood.

by Mariavc



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Dark Skyeward, F/M, Skye is raised by Hydra, Smut, Violence and Revenge, and lots of smut, ish
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-07
Updated: 2016-10-09
Packaged: 2018-04-25 06:12:18
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 61,380
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4949731
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mariavc/pseuds/Mariavc
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Skye is taken by Hydra as a baby from the Hunan province, and Daniel Whitehall decides to raise her as his own daughter in hopes that she’ll exhibit some extraordinary ability and help him take over Hydra. He gives her everything she wants except the truth. He keeps her as his most valuable treasure and uses her as his most dangerous asset. She doesn't care about that life, or Hydra; because once she finds someone that can kill him nothing will stop her from finding out the truth and getting her revenge, and Grant Ward, John Garrett’s protégé, seems to be a perfect -and lethal- candidate for that. Of course, getting him to do her bidding is not the hard part when she realizes that she'll have to sacrifice him in order to get what she so desperately wants: Whitehall's head.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Hail Hydra

**Author's Note:**

> PLEASE READ: Hello!!! Here's the promised Smut... and it has a plot to hahaha. For this story, I wanted to pay a little homage to Madame Hydra. Since she's Daniel Whitehall's student in the comic I thought that have him name the baby Ophelia would be a nice nod to that. So this is sort of a take on Madame Hydra. This Skye is darker, capable of a lot of bad things because... things she has lived through, so theres's that.
> 
> But remember that my writing style is the Smutty Optimism, so let's see what happens!
> 
> ALSO! in this AU Whitehall already has the Obelisk.

She steps out of the helicopter, taking a deep breath. It’s going to be a long ass weekend with the convention of evil going on in one of her father’s private villas. Two soldiers traveled with her from France but they had barely spoken two words.

They know. They’ve heard how things work with her and her father. One of the soldiers takes her hand to help her and there are three more waiting to escort her to the house.

The place is beautiful, one of her favorites. It’s a huge mansion with gardens and fields of vineyards close to the Spanish coast. She should enjoy her stay and keep her distance from her father’s guests, as she usually does, but this time is different. This time she’s here with a... personal mission.

“Where’s my father?” She asks to the soldiers that are waiting to escort her.

“He’s on a meeting, Miss Ophelia. Mr. Bakshi is waiting for you in the main house” He doesn’t even make eye contact as he speaks.

“Excellent” She says.

She hates that name. It’s never felt real, and there’s a reason for that. She knows that Daniel is not her real father. She can feel it, and she knows about all the horrible things that he has done, she has seen them happening. They both are capable of horrible things. She walks inside with the soldiers following not far behind. They open the door for her but stay out of the house.

“Ophelia, dear. You look as dashing as always” Bakshi says when she’s meets her in the hallway. He kisses her hand.

“Hello, Sunil” She smiles. Bakshi is polite and collected. When you look at him you know that he’s dangerous, but not the violent murderous type. He’s more into torture; Torture and fine drinks and perfect suits. The guy is smart ad calculating. She knows that he’s gonna make it up in their ranks, her father cares deeply about him, trusts him completely, including with her security, and that’s why it’s not surprise that he wants them to get together.

“It’s always a pleasant surprise and an honor to see you,” He says.

She smiles and takes his arm as they start walking. “Thank you. So… where’s my old man?”

“He is in a meeting with Agent John Garrett. I believe he told you about it?”

“The super soldiers guy? Yeah. He asked me to do a little background check, find out if they’re secretly planning to murder us. The usual”

Bakshi smiles. She gets the impression that he enjoys her sense of humor, maybe because he can’t be that uptight. He’s not that bad as far as possible-future-arranged relationships could go, except that he’s a tool.

“Well. Then you will join us for dinner, right?” He asks.

“Of course. I’m just going to go to my room and change, maybe visit the stables”

“Oh, I wish I could join you but I’m rather busy with preparations for the rest of our guests”

“Don’t worry about it. We have the whole weekend right?” She smiles and Bakshi walks her to the door of her room.

It’s a shame that he’s too loyal to her father. Things could have been easier.

* * *

 

“Place looks fancy” Grant says when they are sitting in Whitehall’s office. They’re waiting for him. He doesn’t particularly like to be in these things but John insisted that it was important. They are running out of time and they need more funding to make their project move a little faster. They need to have everybody’s trust and show them more results.

“Whitehall is pretty high up in the food chain, son. You have to thank him for all the nice toys” Garrett smiles and then they hear the door.

“Mr. Garrett. It’s a genuine pleasure to have you here” Whitehall says and immediately moves to his desk, he sits down in front of the two men.

“You asked for good news, and I have good news sir”

Whitehall smiles, and then looks at Grant “So this is your protégé”.

“His name is Grant Ward” John says and Grant nods “He’s the best of the best sir, and soon he’s going to get us our last ingredient for our toy soldiers”

“The centipede program” Whitehall says, lacing his fingers.

“We’re making progress. The subjects are responding and the development of the eye prosthesis is almost done. We’re not short on volunteers and Po is selling the whole clairvoyant thing to get us some extra help”

Whitehall chuckles “Of course. I heard your people has been in contact with Ian Quinn, too?”

“The guy is an idiot. But he’s the idiot with money and an image that we need right now”

“Excellent” Whitehall smiles “I’m sure Herr Baron will be pleased with your work”

“My boy here has been working on Coulson’s case too. Fury is keeping everything under wraps. The case is only level 10 clearance. It might take some time but he’ll get it done”

“Whatever Jesus Juice they used to bring him back, we just need to make Agent Coulson tell us, which I will. Then we’ll use it for our soldiers”

Whitehall smiles “I like your confidence”

“We’re here to help sir. You know… Hail Hydra” John smiles.

“Did you bring the samples?”

“Of course, sir. It’s already in the lab”

“Fantastic. I hope you’ll explain more details tonight”

“That’s why I’m here, sir. I’ll explain everything to the others”

“Perfect. Mr. Bakshi will take care of everything you might need. Now, if you don’t mind” He looks at Ward “I believe we have some other topics to discuss”

John looks at Grant and he nods, stands up and then leaves immediately.

* * *

 

She changes into something casual, it’s still early in the morning. The show can wait. So she decides to go to the stables, distract herself a little, think about her next move. Daniel acts like he cares…. maybe, but she’s never felt loved. He has given her everything in the world, everything but the truth.

There’s always the sad story about how SHIELD killed her mother and he had to raise her alone. He says that she’s the most important thing that he has, that she’s special, that she’s Ophelia Whitehall, destined to greatness. It doesn’t matter how much her father says that she’s different, she doesn’t have any powers or anything, just that she can touch this thing that turns people into stone. Yeah, that’s it. She can touch a metallic thingy, they don’t know what to do with it. She doesn’t want to be this person. She doesn’t care about Hydra or any of this, but he knows that her father has his way of making people do whatever he wants, and she's not above any of that.

So she prefers to pretend that she can be someone else. She goes by Skye, at least in the Internet, where he can’t control her. He’s cold and pragmatic. She’s seen him kill people in cold blood, with his bare hands, and then he takes her to a nice place to have dinner and ask about what she wants to do, if she wants to keep studying, if she wants to travel, if everything’s ok with work using this soft, calm voice that also makes her feel like she owes him everything.

Lots of men and women have died in front of her eyes due to her father’s experiments. Daniel says that it’s necessary, that discovery requires experimentation, that they do it for her and the world, for a better future. She knows the truth though. He’s nothing more than a psychopath and a murderer that probably took the lives of her real parents in the same way. She’s not that different though, and that’s why she’s going to make him pay for that, no matter what she has to do.

Grant knows who she is the exact moment he sees her. He’s heard about Whitehall’s daughter. He has heard that he keeps her guarded like his most valuable treasure, that men have been punished for daring to approach her, and he has heard that she’s beautiful. That last thing though… beautiful is an understatement for the woman that he sees walking in the gardens.

She’s going to the stables; no one is following her, well… no one except Grant. He just can’t stop himself, he’s curious and he keeps his distance but he wants to see her.

It’s worth the risk though. She doesn’t look like her father at all, not with her long, dark hair and her tanned skin and her big, beautiful, brown eyes.

She’s looking at him.

“You know, I’ve sent agents to the artic for stalking me like that” She says, grabbing a big brush and then moving to pet one of the horses and the animal blows happily, moving his head like he recognizes her.

He needs to find his cool, it’s just an attractive woman, that’s all. He smirks “Ophelia Whitehall… “ Grant says cockily and finally approaches her from his hiding spot behind a wooden column. He doesn’t fail to notice the slight change in her expression when he says her name “I’ve heard about you. I just didn’t expect that you would be here”

“Then you haven’t heard enough about me. You would know that wherever my father goes, I go… Grant Ward”

That catches him by surprise, but he masks it well. “Impressive, you know my name”

She smiles “Grant Ward, 31. Level 6 Shield specialist, some say that you’re the best since Romanoff. Bad with people. Family-“ She stops when she sees him clench his jaw. He looks serious now, his cocky grin erased from his face.

“Complicated” He finishes.

“Are you impressed now?”

“So you took a look into shield files in your daddy’s computer”

She rises her eyebrow at him “That’s what you think I do? I don’t need that. SHIELD’s RSA implementation is like a walk in the park if you have the right skills”

“Modest”

“What are you doing here?” She brushes the horse’s side, but looks at Grant defiantly.

“What are _you_ doing out here?”

“It’s my house. I can go wherever I want to go. I thought my father was expecting you and Agent Garret, and I asked you first by the way”

“They’re talking right now”

“And sent you out? How rude”

“I was given an order. I have my own mission and they had things to talk about that don’t concern me” He crosses his arms, which gives Skye the perfect view of his biceps.

She needs to stop staring. “Wow… another Hydra tool bag” She shakes her head and smirks “And I thought you had potential” She says and walks past him.

He chuckles. “At least I’m not spoiled girl, you know?”

She laughs at that and looks at him, she’s grabbing a smaller brush. “That’s what you think I am?” She walks closer “The spoiled, shallow heir to the empire that always get what she wants…”

She’s close, way to close.

“I didn’t say that” He steps closer.

She stares at his lips for a second “Wanna ride with me?”

He blinks “What?”  

“A horse” She smiles “Do you want to ride with me?” 

He moves back “Not really”

“So... you come here to insult me and then reject me. If I were a spoiled little princess you would so be in trouble right now”

He smirks “I’m not an idiot, Miss Whitehall. I know the games that you like to play and honestly, I prefer to stay away from _that_ kind of trouble”

She chuckles and goes back to the horse. “Sure you do” She turns and catches him staring at her ass. She smiles “You can at least help me here. Do you mind?”

He blinks and looks at her, then at the horse. She’s opening the small fence to guide the animal out.

Grant moves next to her and she moves her hand to his shoulder. She squeezes when she impulses herself up, and his hand moves to her waist.

He really likes the way she smells. It’s intoxicating, and the way she digs her nails in his shoulder. But she moves too fast, and she’s out of his reach now.

She grabs the reins and Grant has to give space when the animal starts moving. “And just so we’re clear. You _are_ in trouble, Grant Ward” She smiles and then she’s gone.

He doesn’t even know what she meant but he doesn’t feel threatened… not physically at least. It’s just a bad idea. She has a reputation, her father has a reputation and he’s just here to help John and do his job. No matter how… hot and tempting, and how badly he wants to see her again. He needs to stay away from that woman.

 

* * *

 

She likes the peace she feels when she’s on a horse. It’s one of the few moments when she’s in control.

Except that she isn’t. She’s thinking about him.

He had seen his picture and she knew he was hot but in person he is… he is… something she wasn’t expecting. It’s going to take some work. Maybe she’ll have to sleep with him.

Not like it’s a bad idea. She can have some fun with him while it lasts.

Or maybe it’ll be even easier, because she hears the sound of another horse galloping behind hers.

“What did you mean with potential?” He yells.

She smiles. She has him “Stop following me, creep”

“I thought you were more fun”

“And I thought you wanted to stay away from trouble” She says, finally looking at him when he catches up to her “Believe me, I’m trouble”

“I like to take my risks” He smirks, tilts his head to the side. “You don’t look that scary to be honest”

She wants to kick him off that horse and jump his bones at the same time. It’s going to be fun. “You really need to find your place, soldier”

“There’s nothing else to do in the house”

“You mean there’s nothing to do besides bothering me”

“Well, you said it was your house. I think you should take care of your guests”

She looks at him “You are not my guest. Go find Bakshi or something”

“Sure. Your uptight boyfriend”

She scuffs “Watch your mouth, you wouldn’t like my boyfriend’s methods”

“So it’s true?”

“None of your business”

He moves ahead to block her way.

“Leave!”

“Come on, princess”

“Sorry. But I’ve lost my interest”

“What was that potential thing?”

“You said you’ve heard about the games I like to play. Maybe I just wanted to play with you,” She says in a lower voice, giving him a once over. Grant freezes for a moment. “It would have been fun” She moves around him and Grant follows her again. Yes, it's going to be easy, it might take some time but he's going to be easy to-

“Bullshit”

She stops. “What?”

“I don’t buy it. Your whole…” He says gesturing at her “Femme fatale thing”

That catches her by surprise. He’s smiling, challenging her. “I’m not that”

“Oh, I know. That’s what you’re pretending to be though. Seducing men, threatening them to the point everybody is scared to look at you in the eye like all those soldiers. I mean don’t get me wrong… you look… you are beautiful but it’s not-“

“You know what?” She lifts her hand “Just… shut up” She says but that just makes his cocky grin grow even wider. “Whatever you’re trying to prove here. It’s not working. I’m done listening to you, and I’m going to go now. If you try to follow me again, you’ll have 10 guards on your ass in three seconds”

“Ophelia...”

“Don’t call me that” She says and then her horse picks up speed, leaving him alone again.

Maybe it’s better if he just does what she said, but he can still feel it, the same thing that made him follow her in first place. It’s stupid, but she’s… magnetic. The thing is, it’s true that he had heard a lot of things about her, but meeting her in person makes him feel like none of that can be true. There’s someone else hiding under her façade and he wants to see that. 

* * *

 

That night the house is full of guests, most of the important Hydra heads and backers are there.

She couldn’t care less about all this crap. If given the chance, she’d burn all of them to the ground with her- with Daniel. Also with that Ward asshole. She can make a new plan. She can find someone else that can help her. Mean are easy and predictable, there are lots of Hydra agents or mercenaries that can do this for her and she wouldn't give a shit of they live or die and if they fail she can always act like nothing happened and move on to the next one. 

“Ophelia, please” Whitehall says, moving the chair for her. She sits on his right and Bakshi sits on his left.

And Ward is next to Bakshi. He really looks amazing in a suit.

“This wine, gentlemen, is a 1945 Marques de Riscal. Almost impossible to find. It’s from the region, of course” Daniel starts when the maids come with the bottles. “Very rare, only for the men, and women that can appreciate it”

He keeps talking and they bring the food. All the pretentious bastards smiling and eating and drinking, the occasional -and gross- stares that the Sheikh throws at her… it’s like a routine. She smiles and pretends, speaks when she’s supposed to, but this time there’s something different.

She feels his gaze all the time. Every word, each fake laugh… and he never moves his eyes off her. It makes her feel like she’s burning.

When their eyes meet she has to look away, take her glass and drink. Her mouth is dry and his eyes are on the cleavage of her blue dress. Are they seriously not noticing this?

“Dear?” Daniel asks and startles her.

“Uhmm? What?”

“Is everything ok?”

“Yeah” She smiles. Grant is focused on his plate now, the bastard.

“You’re very quiet tonight”

“Oh” She looks at the rest of the guest “I’m enjoying the evening, and the company. Agent Garrett here was speaking about the centipede program, right? I was just thinking that we could speed things up, go straight to the source. Maybe I can help with that”

Grant speaks. He doesn’t even lift his gaze from his plate “Fury. We can’t. He would see us coming from a mile”

“He wouldn’t see _me_ ” She scoffs and Grant finally looks at her.

“Anyone could try to get that information from the inside. Even Alexander Pierce himself. There’s a reason why we haven’t done that”

“Because you want to spend your sweet time trying to get that Coulson guy to tell you? That’s not how we work”

“Yeah. Exactly. And not exposing our whole organization. That’s how we work”

“That’s ridi-“

“Ophelia” Daniel finally interrupts and then she notices that everybody is staring at them. Her father, then, looks at Agent Garrett “Mr. Garrett. I’m sure you have everything under control”

“Of course. As I said, we’re still on schedule”

“There are other projects that require our full attention now, like the very promising assets at the sandbox. Mr. Bakshi?” Daniel asks and the conversation resumes.

And Grant Ward is staring at her again. That’s not how she planned this. She needs to be more cautious, or maybe try a different approach.

 

* * *

She knocks on Daniel’s door and when he tells her to come in she opens the door.

“Bakshil told me that you wanted to see me,” She says. Her father is standing next to the fireplace.

“Yeas, dear. We didn’t have a moment to speak today” He takes a sip from his scotch. “How was France?”

She smiles and walks to the cabinet where her father stocks his bottles. “France was delightful, as always”

He’s next to her “Please” He takes the bottle from her hands and pours her a glass of the same scotch that he’s drinking. “I hope you had time for your little task”

“Of course, father. They’re clean, but if I have to be honest… I don’t really trust Agent Garrett.”

“Neither do I. But he’s serving his purpose. I hope that explains your behavior tonight”

“Oh. I just thought that we should keep an eye on the centipede program”

“You know that I trust you, and I trust your judgment. We’ll keep an eye on Agent Garrett and his... associate, but we won’t forget about our side projects. We don’t need any unwanted attention from the others, do we?” He smiles.

“Of course not, father”

“Excellent. I'll leave that to you, as always. For what I saw tonight, it seems like Agent Ward is a good place to start”

She nods and takes a sip from her drink.

* * *

 

“What the hell was that?” John says in a loud voice. They are in his room.

“What?”

“Your little banter with Whitehall’s daughter? You think I didn’t notice the way you were looking at her?”

“Well… she’s hot”

John scoffs, almost laughs at that “Maybe, just this once, keep it in your pants, son. That woman does whatever she wants with men like you, and we can’t afford that right now. You know why we’re doing all this, right?”

“Of course. There’s nothing to worry about, John”

“Look. If you want to fuck her, do it and be done with her. I mean I can’t judge you. But she’s dangerous. Remember that. If Whitehall ever finds out what we’re doing here he’ll have our heads”

“I’m not an idiot. I’m not getting anywhere near Ophelia Whitehall’s pants. Don’t worry about it” Grant says as he walks to the door.

He just needs some sleep. He needs to forget about those eyes, and that smile, and that blue dress.

It’s hard though, because he can’t even stop thinking about her smell, or her hand on his shoulder. The house is completely silent now. He knows that she’s somewhere in here.

But he definitely wasn’t expecting to find her in his room.

“What are you doing here?” He asks.

“Again. My house. Now tell me. What’s your angle?” She’s sitting on his bed, legs crossed.

“What?” He makes a point to stare directly into her eyes.

“You’re good reading people. Well, Grant Ward. You’re not the only one. That cocky attitude doesn’t suit you. I don’t think that you and Garrett are interested in being here. You think it’s ridiculous” She raises and eyebrow and leans back, supporting her weight on her arms and Grant’s getting a perfect view of her boobs in that tight dress.

“What’s ridiculous?” He’s not staring at her face anymore. That’s for sure.

“Everything. This meeting, the plans, the whole… let’s take over the world, hail Hydra”

He clenches his jaw and keeps staring in silence as she gets up and walks to him.

“Maybe we’re not that different, you know?” She whispers, and places her hand over his chest.

“What are you saying?” He meets her eyes again. They seem darker now.

“What do you want, Grant Ward?”

He walks closer. He can feel his heart beating faster, the heat emanating from her body. They’re in the same page now. Her finger keeps drawing patterns over the white fabric of his shirt. “I really want to kiss you” He doesn’t even stop to think how bad this might go. Maybe she’s using him. Maybe she was just sent by her father to find out if they’re hiding something. His training taught him better than this.

“And what’s stopping you?”

A lot of things, actually, but then his hand is on her neck, his lips on hers. He doesn't care.

He moans, and she presses his body between hers and the door.

His mouth is hot and demanding, he pushes her lips open and then she feels his tongue.

She moves one hand to the back of his head, the other to his firm chest, and she pulls on the fabric now. This is more like it. She can make this work. And she just hit a nerve. Maybe he’s up to something, how hard could be to make him do what she needs to do? She’s in control, not the other way around, right?

He bites her, his hands move down to her ass and she squeezes hard over the dress’ elastic fabric.

Shit. She wants him. She wants him to take her right there, hard. She wants him to make her scream. She can feel his growing cock against her stomach and she doesn’t care that this is not supposed to happen… at least not yet. She has a plan and maybe she should make him beg for it first, promise him what he wants as his price. It wouldn't be the first time.

She pushes him “Wait” She’s almost out of breath.

Grant looks totally out of it, but he stops. He looks confused. “Something wrong?”

“Yeah… we’re not… we’re. There are all these people in the house…”

“You care about that?” He kisses her again and this time she moans. It’s embarrassing.

He smiles. It’s dark and sinful and full of promises for the night.

She’ll just have to make this work, and even if it doesn’t she still gets a good fuck. There’s no point in trying to convince herself that she can stop now. Grant is already laying her on his bed and kissing his way down her neck. She’s practically grinding against the leg that he has between her thighs.

She moans when he cups her breasts over the dress. He can tell that she’s not wearing a bra, and he only has to slide the fabric to the side to meet her naked flesh.

“God, your hot as hell” He’s panting and she’s a mess under his body. Her skirt has moved up to her waist and he can see her lacy, black panties, feel the heat pooling at her core against his leg.

he opens her eyes to see him completely lost in her body. “Are you going to keep me waiting?”

“Never” Grant says before kissing her again. She feels her small hands pulling at the lapels of his blazer to get rid of it.

“Fuck me, Grant,” She moans and then grabs the back of his head, guiding him to her exposed throat. With her free hand she takes his and moves his finger inside her panties, moving the fabric to the side. “Yes! Fuck. Yes!” She yells when he takes the hint and pushes one finger inside her easily.

He can feel his cock twitching inside her pants. It’s almost painful. He’s never wanted anyone like he wants this woman right now. His mouth bites hard against her collarbone and keeps moving south until his lips find her hardened nipple. He sucks and she moans his name again, rubbing herself against his hand, reaching for his belt.

She pulls his erection out unceremoniously, pumps him hard in her hand. “Do it now” She demands breathlessly and Grant can only groan in response. His face is buried between her breast and he’s fucking her hand as if he had no restrain over his own actions.

“Just put it in me” She moans “Grant…” It sounds whiny and needy but she doesn’t care.

“Yes” He replies and positions himself between her legs.  She grabs his tie and pulls him down to capture his lips again when he slides in. They both moan as he stretches her out until he’s fully inside her.

She slaps his ass hard. “Move”

Grant complains. He’s still enjoying the feeling of her inner muscles tightly wrapped around him, but then, when he pulls out he feels like he’s about to loose his mind. He immediately thrusts back, harder, and Ophelia bites her lip to muffle her scream.

“Yeah. Like that” Her hand in on her exposed breast and then she grabs his bicep with the other, digs her nails in the fabric of his shirt when he picks up pace.

He fucks her into the matters, rough and fast, just how she wanted it.

Because she really wanted it, _him_.

She yells his name, kisses his face, his jaw, bites his earlobe and pulls his hair.  She’s panting. “From behind. Fuck me from behind”

Grant growls in response, pulls out and flips her effortlessly until she bites the pillow. He pulls her ass up roughly, places his hand firmly over her hip and then he’s inside her again.

“Holy Fuck!” He groans, because she’s already started to shake around his dick. It feels amazing. She feels amazing.

She’s clutching the pillows, muffling her cries with them and pushing back to meet his thrusts. It’s the best damn sex he’s ever had and he’s going to make sure that she feels the same way. Her body is already shaking as her orgasm builds.

Her body tenses and she yells into the pillow.

“Come on” He grabs her arms and pulls her up until they’re on their knees, her back is pressed to his chest and he holds her tight as she comes. Her climax triggers his, and Grant has to bury his face against her neck.

They don’t stop moving though. He keeps pushing inside her body and she places her hands over his to show him what she wants. With one hand he guides him to her breasts, and the other to her clit.

Grant complies gladly. He’s spilling into her and rubbing her body in all the right places as she rides her orgasm in his strong arms.

He finally falls down, spent, with her still in his arms. He sighs contently.

His right hand is still cupping her mound, his left one playing with her breasts. He’s turning her on again.

“Are you on the pill or something?” He finally asks.

She chuckles at that. She feels so relaxed with his hands all over her body. “Yeah” She says but it comes out like a moan when he dips his middle finger inside her again.

“Turn around” He says and helps her move over him.

She looks at him with glazed eyes, her lips are swollen, and her hair is a mess. She looks absolutely radiant.

Grant grabs the back of her head and pulls her down for a kiss. He digs his finger in her soft locks. She’s unbuttoning his shirt.

“You’re overdressed for the occasion, Agent Ward” She says and smiles against his lips. The next second she’s out of his reach.

Grant opens his eyes to see her standing in front of the bed. In one movement she pulls down her dress and panties.

“God, you’re gorgeous” He says, feeling his mouth go dry. His hand moves on its own to grab his dick and she follows the motion with her eyes.

She crawls back into the bed with a sinful smile, places her hands on his legs and then moves them up. She pulls her pants and black boxers all the way down, get rid of them along with his shoes and socks, making sure that he can always feel her nails as she does it.

He’s just barely aware that he’s still grabbing his dick, but his eyes are on her.

“Let me take care of that for you” She says and then covers his hand with hers to make him stroke himself. a couple of times before taking him in her mouth.

His hand goes to her hair and his head moves back against the mattress.

She scrapes her teeth along his length and Grant can only moan in response. He tastes like her and his own cum. She licks her way back to the tip before closing her lips around him again, taking him deep in her mouth.

“Oh shit! Ophelia! Your amazing” He groans loudly and pulls her hair, but for some reason, she decides to stop. “What’s wrong?” He complains.

“Can you…” She licks her lips and then smiles. This is stupid, but she really wants to try it. “Call me something else?”

He would anything she wanted at this point to be honest. “What do you want me to call you?” He smiles back at her.

She’s still grabbing him, but she moves up his body until he’s right at her entrance. Grant closes his eyes when she rubs her wet folds against the tip. “Call me Skye” She whispers against his ear and moans when she presses him against her clit.

Grant moves his hips up eagerly, his hands move to her hips and he just nods “Yes. Skye. I’ll call you Skye”

She smiles and finally takes him inside. “I like how you say it” She bites her lip and then kisses his jaw. She set a slow pace this time, moving forward and backwards in perfect synch with his hips. She pulls his shirt with Grant’s help and finally enjoys the view of his naked, muscled torso.

He reaches for her boobs and Skye moans in response, placing her arms around his head as she leans down to press their bodies together. This is definitely better than she thought that her weekend would go. It’s hard to remember why she’s doing this when she likes it too much. She bites his chin and then kisses him again.

“You’re so good, Grant,” She moans and he moans in response, wrapping one arm around her waist, then his hand slides to grab her firm butt.

He knows what he meant earlier that day now. He’s definitely in trouble. He likes to be in trouble way too much. His trouble is now sitting upright, exposing her perfect curves to him. She’s a vision as she arches her back and closes her eyes, moving faster, clutching her walls around him.

“Skye…” He places his hands on her thighs. He likes the way that name sounds. HE doesn’t care why, but it sounds more fitting, its like here, with him, she’s a completely different person.

“Yes Grant” She moans and places her hands on his chest.

He sits and kisses her again, then flips them over so he can be on top. Skye doesn’t protest, she wraps her legs around his waist and thrusts up.

“I’m so close” She moans against his ear, holds onto his body tight when he goes faster.

He feels her hot breath as she curses, feels her nails on his back and her chest against his. “Shit, Skye!” He moans loudly and goes still as he comes hard. It sends a shock through his body; his mouth is open and pressed against her sweaty skin. 

His hand has to reach between them. It won’t take long to send her over the edge. She’s already writhing under him when he rubs her with his thumb. She responds, arching her body and moving with his hand, needing her own release.

Skye grabs the back of his neck, pulls him for another kiss that turns into her just moaning against his mouth when she comes. Grant slows down and kisses her back. She barely responds, but her lips curve up in a smile and her limbs are still firmly wrapped around him. Grant is not complaining though. He just flips her until she’s on top, trying to catch her breath and stretching her legs lazily.

“So… I guess this is where I go,” She says after a while, but she still doesn’t even move her head off his chest.

“You don’t have to. I mean it’s still your house,” He teases and only places his other arm around her.

She just chuckles “Yeah. It is my house. And as you said, I’m taking care of my guests”

“Hope it doesn’t apply in all the cases” He says.

“Maybe it does. You’ve heard everything about me, remember?”

“Yeah. It just… doesn’t add up. Maybe Ophelia Whitehall does. Skye though, she’s a totally different person”

She finally lifts her head and rests her chin on her crossed arms over his chest. “You’re not going to ask?”

“About the name?” He smiles and moves a strand of her sticking to her face, and then he pouts, “Do you want me to ask?”

“I’m not going to tell you. Not yet anyway”

“Hmm. That sounds good” He says and she raises an eyebrow at him, so Grant elaborates “That sounds like there will be another time. I’m not pushy”

She laughs, “I don’t know. You’re going on your undercover mission now. It might be a while”

“I’m patient too”

“You’re just kind of an asshole”

“And you are a total mystery to me, Skye” He says.

She smiles “Sounds like we’ll have to solve it, then”

“Sounds good to me” He strokes her flushed cheek softly.

He looks at her with something that she hasn’t seen before, it’s… confusing. She feels a connection too. It’s been just a day but this might be a good thing, maybe things will be easier than she expected. Just like Grant, she’s patient. She needs to figure him out, see what’s his relationship with John Garrett, and find out what they really want from Hydra. As long as she keeps it under control, maybe she can have some fun too. The only thing that matters is that at the end of this, she walks out with Daniel Whitehall’s head.

But then, it’s to focus on that when Grant Ward kisses her like he’s doing it again.


	2. Our darker selves

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set during the Well, as Grant goes to his undercover mission with team Coulson, but he's still seeing Whitehall's daugther behind John's back, it might be getting out of control for both of them, but Grant never needed anyone as bad and Skye... she needs to think about her next move.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It'll get a little darker guys, and of course, more complicated. Hope it counts for the smut challenge hahaha.

The flight attendant offers her a glass of champagne. She takes it and then Bakshi joins her, sitting in front of her and carrying his own glass.

 “It’s a short flight,” She says and the man smiles. They are flying in one of Hydra’s private planes.

 “I know, but I spent the last couple of months in America and being in your company is always an occasion to celebrate”

 They make a toast and she smiles before taking a sip from her bubbly drink.

 “The World was attacked by aliens again. Maybe it’s to soon to start celebrating anything”

 Bakshi chuckles “Or maybe it is the right moment” He drinks, too “We don’t know what’s really out there. We only know that we have an opportunity”

 “To take over the world?”

 “To make it better, and stronger, to raise above the naïve creatures that inhabit it”

 “Cheers to that” She says and tries not to laugh. If anything, the last attack in London only confirmed that it’s just a matter of time before something really bad happens, something that a group of self-righteous heroes won’t be able to stop. That’s why none of this matters, Hydra, Shield, The Avengers and their attempts to save this world.

 “So how was Los Angeles?” She asks.

 Bakshi scoffs “Awful. But there’s a lot of progress with Agent Garrett’s project” She nods “Mr. Whitehall told me you’ve been in contact with Agent Ward” He adds.

 “Yes. I’ve been sleeping with him” Skye says, as if she’s trying to elicit some sort of reaction from the man, but he looks unfazed, even pleased. It’s not like her father has not make her do something like this before. “I think he trusts me” She chuckles at that and Bakshi smiles. “He’s working with his Shield team, deep cover and no contact with John Garrett. It seems like they’re good, loyal soldiers after all”

 “That’s good news. I really don’t have the time to worry about that scoundrel of a man. We will let them continue with their mission, then. And if you’re done with the soldier maybe we can spend some time together”

 She smiles “Yes. It’s been a while”

 “Only the most valuable prices are worth the wait of men”

 

* * *

 

He’s rather bored and has spent most of the day in which was basically… cleaning after Thor’s mess in London. Most of it it’s rubble, but they still have to be on the lookout for possible alien artifacts. Shield’s job is to find, classify and send them for safe containment or destruction.

 The couple of scientists are bantering in front of him, as they always do. The man is talking about monkeys… again.

“You are our little monkey” Grant jokes and he doesn’t quite know where that came from but he still smiles. The team… they are not bad people. He doesn’t really care about Hydra or Shield but he has met despicable people in this job, and these guys, they are good and they want to do good. He has nothing against that.

The last time they found an artifact Simmons almost died. He saw it as an opportunity. It only took him like 5 seconds to make a plan, find a way to perform an act of selfless bravery. He could have let her die and still act like he tried but he didn’t want her to die. As long as this lasts he’ll be a part of the team, try to help.

He feels his phone vibrating in his pocket after locking in a box a suspicious piece of metal that set Agent Simmons on edge. The scientists are focused on their work again, so Grant takes the device out.

 

_-“Hi there. Heard you where in town. For a super secret spy, you’re really easy to find, you know?”_

_-“Are you in London? Did you do something to my phone?”_

_-“Maybe. And yes. After the last alien visit you wouldn’t think that we would miss an opportunity”_

_-“Right”_

_-“So, when are they going to let you go on leave again?”_

_-“Straight to the point, as always”_

 _-“Don’t say that you don’t_ like it”

_-“Maybe we shouldn’t talk about this in here?”_

_-“Don’t worry. I did something to your phone. It’s super safe”_

He smiles. He should be concerned about that but he smiles.

_-“Fine. I can keep you updated. You can just say that you miss me”_

_-“Ha-ha. You wish”_

A pause. He sees that she’s typing for a few seconds.

 _-“Just text me when you have some free time,” She finally says_.

 

“Are you talking to your girlfriend?”

Grant hears and freezes for a second before turning the phone screen to his chest. Fitz and Simmons are standing in front of him with matching, curious looks on their faces. He doesn’t even know how they managed to do that without him noticing.

“What?” He tries to act natural.

“It’s because you’re smiling” The biochemist says.

“Yeah we never see you smiling, at least not like an idiot” Fitz jokes and then looks down when he gets a serious look from Grant.

“Come on! What was that?” Agent Jemma Simmons asks, a little too excitedly. Grant can only hide his phone back in his pocket.

“He’s hiding his phone!” Fitz points out.

“I know. I know” Simmons adds “You should have told us that you have a girlfriend!” It’s like they’re ignoring him.

“I don’t-“

“Or a boyfriend, whatever” Simmons continues, “You have a heart after all”

“I don’t have a boyfriend!”

“Then a girlfriend” Fitz says. Grant barely can keep up.

“It’s not… it’s… uhm. It’s a friend”

“It’s a special friend,” Simmons says, using a creepy voice that he had never heard before.

Grant sighs.

“Where is she?” Fitz asks.

“Oh! Is she an agent?”

He just shakes his head. “No! She’s not an agent” He tries to locate Coulson and May in the room. They’re nowhere near them “I just want to keep this private, guys” He changes his tone, because at this point there’s nothing he can do but try to go with it and hope that it doesn’t raise suspicions with the other team members.

“We’re not saying anything, right Fitz?”

“No. Never”

“But we want to know!”

Grant sighs, “She’s just someone I’m seeing, it’s nothing important, and it shouldn’t have any relevance. Please, I don’t want Agent May or Coulson thinking that I’m not 100% focused on our missions”

“Sure. But you do have to find the space to loosen up a little. There’s nothing wrong with that”

“It’s still private. So just keep this between us ok?”

They look disappointed but still nod at the same time. It’s always a little creepy.

“Now get back to work,” Grant orders, and then leaves them.

Now he has a big problem. If he wants to continue with his plan he’ll have to get closer to Agent May, but also not let Fitzsimons find out or make comments about this conversation. John definitely wouldn’t like this and he doesn’t even know that he’s still seeing Ophelia Whitehall, which has just made more complicated to find time to get intimate with May.

It’s a mess. He’s a mess. He needs to find a way to get her out of his system and focus on his mission. Whatever this is, it’s not as important as saving John’s life.

 

* * *

 

By the end of the day, things are different.

What he experienced it’s something he hadn’t felt in a long time. He feels rage and pain; it’s so intense that he can’t even breathe. He wants to punch something. He wants to kill something.

He wants to go back to Massachusetts and kill _them._

He can see how the team is looking at him. They are scared. They’re seeing him for what he really is: a monster. John would laugh, John would hit him and call him weak but this time he wouldn’t let him. He would show him exactly how strong he is now.

Grant Ward is nothing but a weapon, a killing machine. For once he would like to yell at his face that he doesn’t fucking care about any of this.

And his damn phone won’t stop ringing.

The last time they talked he was back in the bus, yelling at Fitz and Simmons. He basically told her to fuck off. Whatever reason she’s still interested in him it’s not… real. No one could ever want him and even less a woman like that. If he’s a monster she’s even worse and he’s not going to sit down and wait until she gets tired of him, or worse, she could find out about John’s plan and then have them chopped in pieces.

He can’t be this stupid for a woman, John would say, not when his life hangs in the balance.

It hurts when those fanatics punch him, they throw him against walls and kick him but he doesn’t care. They’re strong but they don’t stand a chance against someone like him. It’s cathartic, hearing how their bones crack against his fist, feeling the blood on his fingers.

He wants to do this to the whole world until he can’t feel or remember anything.

It doesn’t get better when they crash in a hotel in Dublin. He goes to the bar, alone. He needs to drink and reorganize his thoughts.

The alcohol helps a little. He can feel how his sore muscles relax, but just until his phone vibrates again. He sighs. He had plans for the night.

Agent May tried to help him, for what he’s heard the woman carries her fair share of demons inside, and she held the three pieces of the asgardian staff together. It’s a good opportunity to share their experiences, he wouldn’t mind a warm body next to his that can take his mind off the memories for the night, maybe she feels the same way.

Except that is not the body he wants.

He takes the phone, barely reads the lines of curses and insults.

He only types one word “Dublin”

About an hour later he’s opening the door of his room for her, grabbing her arms, pushing her against a wall, devouring her lips. He’s going to take it against her. He’s going to use her like she’s probably using him and fuck here until his body can find some release.

She shrieks, pushes him. “What the fuck is wrong with you?” She yells, almost out of breath, there’s a little amount of blood on her lip.

“You are the one that came all the way from London” Grant growls, he’s already hard and he takes a step towards her again, she’s licking the blood on her lip. “Why? What do you want?”

She swallows, everything, including what’s left of her pride. Part of her is just trying to convince herself that she’s doing this for a reason, but there’s this voice in her head that is warning her that things are getting out of control and that it’s not worth the risk.

“I want you to fuck me, Ward, and you want that too” This time Skye’s the one taking the step that brings them closer, taking back control “Come on, just do what you want”

Before she can even register that he’s moving, Grant is ripping her dress, pulling down her panties, getting rid of all his clothes almost tearing them apart. He pushes her into the bed, kisses her again until Skye is moaning and struggling to breathe against his lips.

She screams when he slides inside her without a warning, and he doesn’t let her adjust, he doesn’t stop; he just starts thrusting hard, growling like a feral animal with is gaze lost in the white pillows and his weight on his elbows.

“Grant…” She moans his name, planting her feet on the bed and pushing her hips up frantically. If she wants it this way she can fuck just as hard. She cups his face to making look at her.

He backs away. Closing his eyes and grunting when she clenches around him “Fuck, Skye!” then he hoists her hips up, changing their angle so he can stay on his knees as he pushes into her, digging his fingertips in her flesh as she just tries to keep her hips up.

He fucks her with everything he’s got but it seems like it’s not enough, the ugly feeling in his chest has just moved to his stomach and he goes faster. He yells her name and goes harder.

Her whole body starts shaking violently. Grant sees her closing her eyes and screaming his name as she grabs the sheets and arches her back.

“Oh God, Grant, fuck, Grant!”

He leans forward and pins her arms above her head, his body still hovering over hers, feeling her walls suck him deeper inside. He doesn’t stop, he can’t stop.

“Skye, skye… say my name” He demands, pressing his body against hers, trapping her under him “make me forget!” He growls and then captures her lips again, stifling her desperate moans.

She feels her second orgasm coming fast, her legs are still shaking it almost hurts, except that it’s also thee most intense sex she’s ever had, she screams into his ear, feels him sucking on her neck, licking and cursing against her skin, moving down, kissing between her breasts and she can’t even recognize the sound she makes. She comes again under his weight, and there’s no escape. He keeps her pressed against the mattress as she writhes when pleasure takes over.

This time he slows down, kissing his way up her neck and back to her lips. “Skye…”

She can’t answer, her head is still spinning and he’s still inside her, still hard, still moving. Good, she feels like she’s about to pass out. “It’s ok” She mumbles and holds onto his arms and he picks up pace again, not as brutal as before, he wants to hurt people, but he doesn’t want to hurt her.

Not _her._

But the rage does not go away, the memories.

He looks at Skye, her swollen, parted lips, and her dark, glazed eyes. He recognizes what he sees.

She looks away and moans, digging her nails in his biceps.

“Skye, look at me” he says, this time it doesn’t sound demanding, it sounds like a plea.

And she looks at him again, as much as her blurry vision lets her. He looks… he looks… broken.

“Oh God” His head falls forward. He’s almost there.

Her legs no longer respond but she wraps her arms around his back. “Just let go” She breathes and doesn’t recognize her own, hoarse voice. She shuts her eyes and feels him as he goes rigid, but then her own body gives in for a third time. She arches against him, her head falling back against the pillow before she fades off.

 

* * *

 

 “What are you doing here?” Grant says and she realizes that her eyes are open. She’s been staring at the ceiling; he’s no longer over her.

“Good question, especially after you basically called me a psycho-whore” She replies, still in hoarse voice. And her body… God, this is going to hurt tomorrow.

He closes his eyes “I didn’t say anything like that”

“You were telling me about that Asgardian stick and then you completely lost it all of the sudden, what do you want me to say?” She turns to face him.

“Why did you do it?” He asks.

“I just…” She looks down “I hacked into your team’s reports about the artifact and those fanatics”

“What do you know?”

“I know about the strength, that the subjects were violent”

“Why did you come here?” He insists

Silence. She’s been questioning herself the same thing. She just stood Bakshi up at some Restaurant in Liverpool when she got his text and took the plane. She was going to have a perfect, calm, even satisfying evening.

She came to one conclusion when her driver pulled over in front of his hotel: She had Grant in the palm of her hand now, she couldn’t afford the asshole getting himself killed or something, she needed to see what was happening.

That was the reason.

And she was angry and offended, but then she felt that something was not right.

As if she knew anything about this man.

“I don’t know,” She says.

“What do you really want with me, Ophelia?”

“Don’t call me that”

He sighs, “What’s with the damn name?” He looks broken, tired, and just now she realizes that he smells like whiskey. “What do you want?” He pushes.

“Grant…”

“What the fuck do you want!” He yells and she freezes.

“I came here because I thought…”

“You thought what!”

She sees his jaw clenching, a vein pulsating in his neck as he yells. His face is turning red. This has to be the effects of the staff, or maybe this is the real Grant Ward. She needs to think about that. The guy is an assassin, a very skilled one, and that’s what she needs.

“You should leave,” He says “Not just… We should… stop” He looks down. “Please, just leave”

She swallows, there’s that strange feeling again.

“I came here because I felt… something. I don’t know how to explain it. I thought that something was happening. I know. It’s ridiculous,” She admits.

“Nothing good can come out of this, Skye… us”

He’s still looking down but she hears how his voice breaks.

It’s something she has never felt before, and she doesn’t know how to react to that. He’s crying.

And she feels, she feels… she actually feels, which is something that has not happened in a long time.

“Do you want to tell me what happened?” She asks in a soft voice. She… genuinely wants to know. She doesn’t want to see him like that. There’s nothing wrong in admitting that.

“I… can’t”

She grabs his hand “How about… I tell you about the name first?”

He looks at her but doesn’t say anything. Skye places his hand on his cheek and smiles at him when he places his hand over hers.

“I feel like I can trust you. Do you trust me? I know exactly who I am and what I’ve done and what you’ve heard but… you can trust me” She says and squeezes his hand “The name… it’s because I’m not… happy with this life. I’m not proud of all of those things that you’ve heard and when I can pretend that I’m someone else it feels nice. I started going by Skye in the Internet, but I like it. I like how you say it” She smiles. “Now, if you say anything about that my father will probably punish me, trust me, it wouldn’t be pretty, but I have the feeling that you won’t, that sometimes you feel like this too and you understand”

“Has he ever… punished you? For something you’ve done…”

“Yes he has” She says and feels the grip of his hand tighten. He shuts his eyes. “Grant, what’s going on?”

“The staff. It brings the worst out of you. It increases your strength, but it also makes you suffer for it. It makes you remember your worst memories, see your worst fears. I just… can’t stop thinking about it. I can’t get it out of my mind” He speaks through clenched teeth.

“Is it about your family?” She asks and he tenses.

Grant takes a moment before nodding.

She knows everything about them. He comes from a politic family in Massachusetts. His brother is a Senator, just like his father was, and his grandfather before him. They’ve been in the Congress, Senate, positions in the Cabinet and Embassies. They’re respected and loved by the people.

“I failed my brother. My little brother… Thomas. I couldn’t save him. My parents and Christian would torture us, he made me do all these things”

“Calm down” She says.

Grant chuckles “One time he ate a piece of Christian’s birthday cake. He beat the crap out us” He sighs. “That went on for years, and years…” He chokes in his own words “It all came back at once”

Skye doesn’t say anything else. She moves her hand to the back of his head and kisses him. It’s soft, like nothing they’ve done before. She closes her eyes and presses her lips against his for a few seconds, and then she hugs him.

Grant just lets her. His face is against her chest and she’s stroking his back gently. He reaches for her, doesn’t care about what John would say about him being weak, being an idiot and trusting this woman like that. She makes him feel better, Skye, not Ophelia Whitehall. He wants to believe that what she said is true, because he understands.

“Come on” She says and then cuddles against him. “Maybe you need to get some sleep”

“How does he punish you?” He catches her by surprise with that question.

She takes a moment “It doesn’t happen these days. It took me a long time to learn…He would lock me up for days. He really has a thing for dark, cold, European houses. Really old, with dungeons and everything. I just don’t get it. It’s creepy”

“He locked you up as a kid?”

“It wasn’t that bad. He said that it builds character” She chuckles at that “Being with your own thoughts and focusing on a single goal without the distractions of the outside world… things like that. I don’t really get it but I preferred it, because then he stared making me watch all his experiments. I got used to it too. Maybe he’s right in the character thing. He made me a disciplined soldier”

“You’re not his soldier”

“He’s my father. I’m… whatever he wants me to be”

“And who do you want to be?”

“I don’t know”

“Skye. Are you supposed to be here?”

“Don’t worry about it. I can handle it” Her hand is now on his head, digging in his hair and she can feel how his whole body relaxes under her touch. “What about John?”

“What about him?”

“You seem pretty close”

“I owe him. He’s the reason why I’m here. He saved me”

“He recruited you?”

“He found me. He trained me and gave me a life”

“And have you ever had doubts about that life?”

“Sometimes”

She smiles and keeps playing with his hair. “You’re tired, right?” She asks and Grant nods “Try to get some sleep”

“Are you going to stay?”

“For a little while. I have to go back, Grant”

He sighs deeply; the beating of her heart helps steading his. He doesn’t know what this was. He had never shared things with someone like that. He had never felt like he wanted- that he _needed_ to protect someone.

And she… needs time. She needs time to think.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please tell me what you think.
> 
> Next up: Skye has to deal with the consequences of her decisions and both Whitehall and Garret discover the GH325. And it gets ugly.


	3. All that glitters is not love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John is dying and Whitehall is running out of patience. Skye and Grant meet again in Italy and spend another night together before things start to go wrong.

She’s back in Austria and Grant Ward is probably… somewhere. She doesn’t know. She doesn’t want to know. It was a good thing to put some distance between them, more like… half of the world. She’s thinking more clearly now. That night was a risk, she started feeling things that she shouldn’t. They haven’t talked after that.

She’s still feeling things, new things, and the bruises in her arms and hips, the marks of nails and teeth, the pain in her muscles that wouldn’t go away for days, they were good reminders. There’s a lot more to him than just the spy, the killer, and for a second there she felt like she was able to see the same void in him that she feels inside her. After that night the pain she felt wasn’t just physical, it was… something more. They do have a connection, and she needs to learn how to handle it, take advantage and move forward with her plan now before things get more complicated.

At least he started opening up to her; she believed the things he said and how vulnerable he was. She’s still convinced that John Garrett is up to something but it’s not like she cares, and she needs her father to look in another direction while she works Grant.

She knocks in her father’s study and then he lets her in.

“You wanted to see me, father?” She asks and Daniel nods.

“There you are, Ophelia” He smiles and she feels a chill up her spine when he kisses her cheek. “Please, I was waiting for you dear” He pulls the chair in front of her desk for her and Skye sits. Daniel places his hands over her shoulders.

“When did you come back?” She asks, trying not to sound too nervous.

“This morning”

“Oh… we could have had breakfast together”

“I needed to discuss some pressing matters with Mr. Bakshi. He’s here too, and he told me something very interesting. Do you want to know what he told me?”

And there’s the tone.

She chuckles “Is he still mad?”

“Ophelia. You told me that you wanted to join him in London” He finally moves, sits on the desk in front of her. “Do you want to explain to me how did you end up in Dublin?”

“Come on, dad. I’m not 15”

He clenches his jaw “Have I been anything but honest with you? Haven’t I shared all my plans and ideas…”

“I suppose”

“Watch your tone. I know why you were there. I just want you to tell me why” He asks and she freezes, it’s nothing she can’t handle but he still makes her feel nervous.

“Ok. So you know that Agent Grant Ward was there with his team.”

“You said that we had nothing to worry about with him and John Garrett”

“And we don’t. I just wanted to know what’s his real relationship with John Garrett was before we ruled them out. Plus… I wanted to say goodbye”

“Did you?” Daniel smiles and grabs a folder that’s been on his desk since she entered the room.

“Yeah. We don’t have to worry about them, and I won’t see him again”

The man makes a pleased sound and looks down at the folder “I need you to come with me” He says and then stands up without offering any further explanation.

Skye takes his arm as they walk down to the basements, where her father does his… experiments. She can feel her hands getting cold already; she hears voices, like muffled cries inside the dark rooms.

“We got a new asset. Courtesy of your boyfriend’s team” Daniel teases and she doesn’t even find the voice to respond to that. “He has remarkable abilities that will be very useful for us in the future. I wanted to join us in this occasion, and meet him” He says before opening the door for one of the rooms where they brainwash people.

He’s already strapped to a chair, all bruised, bleeding and begging for his life.

“He’s just a kid” She breathes and swallows that ugly feeling in her throat as she always does. But this time it's worst. He’s so young and there is something attached to his neck that is burning his skin.

“Mr. Bakshi” Her father salutes “Ophelia wanted to join us, and say how sorry she is for leaving you in London”

“All is forgiven” The man smiles “I’m happy that you decided to be here today. This is Mr. Gill, he used to be a cadet at the Shield Academy, but they sent him to us, to help with our work”

The boy manages to move his head and look at her with tears in his eyes.

“We had to take extra measures to inhibit his abilities while we complete the process. Once we’re done he’ll cause no harm. We’re doing this to help him control it and use it” Bakshi finishes.

Skye gasps when Donnie moves in his chair, as if he’s trying to speak but he can’t. She looks away, she looks at her father.

“Don’t worry. When he complies, he’ll feel better. Come with me” He hands her the folder that he’s been carrying “Take a look at that”

It’s hard to focus, they walk out but she can still hear the cries inside the room.

 “Have you ever heard about cybertek?” Daniel adds nonchalantly when they start walking.

 “Sure… we work with them. What about them?” She manages not to let her voice break.

“How about project deathlock? Does that ring any bells?”

 “No. Thankfully” She says and earns a stern look from Daniel. “What’s that?”

Daniel takes his glasses off to clean them as he starts explaining, “After world war II there’s been numerous attempts at recreating the greatest man of our time. Hydra started working with Cibertek in the eighties in the deathlock program to create something… a man, strong, unstoppable”

“Like Captain America?”

“Oh no” He chuckles “He’s just… another copy, but copies never turn out well. And this time they tried to use… machines to recreate it. They replaced organs and limbs with artificial, stronger ones. But the men were not able to survive, all of the subjects died, all but one” He stops walking.

“John Garrett” Skye sees when she looks at the picture. The file also has anatomic designs abut what is inside his body.

“You see, a body can’t survive with these… artificial prosthetics, not for that long, not when you’re rooting inside. Not unless you find something new to be stronger”

“Is he dying?”

“Well, something kept him alive, something like our centipede program”

“So he’s using it. But he’s also creating super soldiers for us, what about it?” She closes the folder.

“It’s not about the centipede formula, it’s about the last ingredient, do you need me to explain that for you?” He approaches her making her back away until her back hits one of the cold walls of the hallway.

She swallows and Daniel leans forward “You’re going to see Grant Ward again, and this time, don’t come here with more lies”

 “I didn’t-“

“Shut up and listen when I’m speaking to you” He raises his voice “I want to know what they want and you are going to find out for me… willingly, do you understand that?” He cups her face and she has to gather all her inner strength not to move away and puke. He rubs her cheek with his thumb “You’re so beautiful. You’re important to me Ophelia. I’m counting on you, ok?” His voice softens and she nods. “That’s better. Now lets get to work” He smiles and finally lets her go.

 She walks, almost runs, swallowing everything back, the hate, the anger and the fear.

 

* * *

 

They were supposed to have zero contact, avoid any suspicious behaviors, but John is getting worse. He’s dying and Coulson doesn’t know shit. They’re close, they know that there was something, something only Fury knows, but it’s completely off records.

“I need good news, son” John mumbles

“Coulson is onto something, maybe with more time-“

“I don’t have more time”

Grant swallows “What about Mike Peterson?”

“We have a sample of the stabilized serum, but it’s not going to be enough. There’s too much damage”

“Come on, John”

“Maybe if you had focused on your mission instead of screwing Whitehall’s daughter” He coughs and Grant freezes in his place “You think I’m an idiot?” He stands and Grant tries to help him but John pushes him away. “You’re not going to fuck this up for us in the last minute, even less for that Hydra whore”

“I’m not seeing her anymore. That’s not going to happen John, I know how important this is”

“I just need you to get your shit straight, son”

 “I’m not stupid, and it’s nothing serious”

John nods “Good. I trust you” His tone softens. “But I need you to focus,” He says and Grant nods, then John adds, “Because we’re going to need a new plan. Screw Hydra. And you’re going to need to call your girlfriend one last time, Romeo. She thinks she's so good making men do her will. We’re going to give her a taste of her own medicine”

* * *

They only meet days later, in Italy, where his team is stationed for a few days. Grant says that he knows a place and she gets the address. It’s a house, she doesn’t know if it belongs to him or hydra or a friend. She doesn’t want to know. This time she’s here for business.

But then she sees him, and he smiles at her and the emptiness in his expression goes away for a second. It’s almost like he realizes that he’s slipping, he tries to control it, goes back to his usual, cocky self. But there’s something about him again that also makes her feel… different, in a good way. It’s exciting.

“Hi” He says, “I didn’t know if you were going to show up at all”

“Why wouldn’t I?”

“Things got a little rougher last time. I should say that I-”

“You think I can’t handle a little rougher?” She crosses her arms “I thought you were just afraid”

“Afraid of what?”

“Well, afraid of showing me who’s behind that the big, tough guy mask”

“I was not the only one showing some layers, Ophelia”

She purses her lips together “Come on, Ward”

He finally closes the distance between them, but when she’s waiting for him to kiss her he just stops, so close. “Maybe I want to see more of that, more of Skye” He reaches for her head, strokes her hair softly, not being quite able to hide the look in his eyes. There’s some sort of… fondness there, there’s truth, there’s something intense. “You don’t have to pretend with me”

“Is this conversation going somewhere? Because I thought that we would be on the bed by now” She counters, her hand moving up his chest. “I couldn’t walk straight for days the last time” She moves her arms around Grant’s neck, then raises an eyebrow at him and it’s like all his previous bravado vanishes completely. She smiles “Not without remembering how you felt. No one ever fucked me that hard, Grant” She decides to take the next step and kisses his neck. His body is so tense right now; she can feel his fingers on her hips, moving down to cup her ass. And just like that, the ball is on her court again. “Don’t you want to do that again?” She moves her mouth to kiss him softly and Grant just parts his lips in response, allowing her to deepen their contact, and she doesn’t hold back.

But he stops, which takes all the willpower that he can gather when her body is pressed against his and everything he can feel is her heat and her smell and the sounds she makes.

He pushes her away, softly, still with the taste of her on his lips. He shakes his head.

“What?” Skye asks, still catching her breath.

“You couldn’t possibly like that” He looks at her “I hurt you, I was-”

“You didn’t” She reaches for him again but Grant grabs her wrist. “Ward, don’t be stupid, this is not what we do”

“Then let me try something new” He cups her face again and then kisses her. It’s slow and sweet and just… different. She can feel his fingers on her hair, stroking softly and then his lips on her cheek and her jaw “Don’t say that you don’t feel it, Skye” She moves her head back to allow him more access to her neck, moaning softly when his hot mouth sucks on her skin. She’s so into it, his hands traveling up and down her body, and the words he whispers against her ear.

She gasps in surprise when Grant lifts her from the floor, carrying her bridal style to the bed. She still wraps her arms around his neck and smiles as he places her in the center of the bed. He’s going to take his time, and first, he kneels in front of her, lifting her legs to take her heels off.

She’s eager. She needs him. She wants to let him do whatever he wants to do.

Grant crawls over her until he can unbutton her black pants, pulling them down along with her panties, as she starts unbuttoning her white shirt. “You’re so beautiful, Skye” He kisses her hipbone and she shifts under his body in response, reaching for his hair. “I know that you know that. I know that everyone says it” He moves up, and his nose is barely touching her skin. “But what they don’t know is that you’re more” She arches, giving him room to move his hand up her back and unclasp her bra. “You’re not what everybody thinks”

She moans out loud when he takes one hardened nipple in his mouth.

“Grant” She’s trying to pull his t-shirt and Grant decides to help, leaving her for a moment with an expression of discomfort in her face. He undresses before her hungry gaze and it’s rather impressive that he’s been taking things so slow when she sees just how hard he is now.

“Everybody knows Ophelia Whitehall, but nobody knows Skye” He s over her again, all his glorious, naked form, but he holds his weight on his elbows and just leans down to place his lips on her skin, all over her body, and he keeps going down, pushing her legs apart.

“You do” She says and end then pulls on his hair, making him move up again “I want you inside me now” and to make an emphasis of her words she wraps her legs around him.

Grant kisses her again and for so long. He’s not rushing anything and Skye is actually enjoying it, forgetting about all her problems outside of this room.

He doesn’t break the kiss as he slides inside her, but her lips part to let out a soft moan.

“Is this to vanilla for you?” Grant asks and feels how she smiles.

“It’s actually pretty nice” She answers and pulls him down to press his body flush against hers and she makes small pleased sounds every time he pulls out and then back in again in a perfect rhythm. He’s not too slow or too fast, but moves his hips until he’s fully inside her, moves in circles, makes her toes curl as he draws out the pleasure.

He props himself on his elbows and looks down. Her eyes are closed and her lips parted. He can feel her nails on his back as he takes her so close only to slow down again and change the angle of his thrusts.

“Please…” She pushes her hips up “Grant, fuck me harder”

He groans when she clenches around him and her fingers move down to dig her nails on his ass. “God, Skye” He moans again and pulls on her hair, pushing harder inside her body and kissing her neck when she arches under him with a loud moan.

Skye can’t process a coherent thought, there’s nothing but Grant and his lips on her neck and his hands on her breasts and all of his sweaty body over her, her name on his lips and his hips driving her mad until she only sees white. She comes abruptly, arching and holding onto him, whimpering every time he moves slowly, chasing his own release, which doesn’t take long as she violently shakes around him, making Grant go still and bite on her skin out of sheer pleasure, and they just stay like that, for minutes before Grant actually manages to roll them over, still holding her in his arms.

That’s another first for them, but it feels nice, resting her head against his chest, feeling how his breathing slows down and how he strokes her back gently.

“Don’t you have to go back to your team?” Skye finally asks but she doesn’t even try to move.

“Nope. I have no intentions of leaving this room any time soon, and you?”

She sighs and takes a moment to think about that “Grant, don’t you think that this might be getting a little out of hand?”

“And would it be that bad?” He makes her lift her head with his hand so he can look at her.

“It would be dangerous. I’m not-“

“Skye” He says and cups her face, stroking her cheek with his thumb “Last time, you said that I could understand. I want you to know that I do, I don’t really care-“

“Do you really trust me like that?” She cuts him off “Because what you’re saying here is more than enough to get you killed”

“I am willing to take the risk”

“Why?”

“Because sooner or later… Hydra, Shield, all of it won’t matter, and for the first time in my life I know that I want something. Skye, no matter what happens next, I just want you to know that this is real”

“What about John?”

“He’s very important to me, and I’m not going to leave him until I can save him, but then…” He smiles and then kisses her again, tangling his fingers in her hair and pushing her back to the bed. “Maybe it could be sooner than we expected”

“How?” She says, smiling, cupping his face in her hands.

“Actually, with your help”

She frowns and stops moving.

“Remember when you said that you could get into Fury’s files?”

She pulls her hands back. Of course. She looks away for a second while she tries to keep her cool “So you need me to do that” She smiles again “I remember some cocky asshole saying that Fury would see me coming from a mile, or something like that? Am I wrong?”

 Grant chuckles “Sorry about that, but even if he does, we don’t really care about that, do we?” He kisses her “By the time Fury can find out about Hydra we’ll have John’s cure, and you and me… we can go anywhere, let Shield and Hydra burn each other to the ground”

“And we can go away from my father?”

He nods “No one will ever hurt you again” Then his mouth is on hers again, taking all the air out of her lungs.

Skye pushes him on his back, straddling him in the process, pinning his hands above his head “I think I had enough sweet words for the night” then she reaches down for his already hardened dick, pumping him a few times before taking him inside her “Come on Grant, I know you can make me forget about everything”

Then she starts moving.

 

* * *

When she wakes up it’s early in the morning, and she feels tired, sated and… stupid. Grant is not there, but he left a note, he’s getting her breakfast.

She saw him sleeping peacefully, with a smile on his face, probably thinking that they can use her however they want after telling her everything they need to do, just like her father has done her whole life, she let her walls down and Grant Ward saw the way to get through her and make her believe that there could be another way, that maybe she didn’t have to send him to a suicidal mission.

But maybe it’s not that bad, as long as she plays his game maybe she can still get what she wants. There’s no running away from her father. He needs to be dead.

She goes down to the kitchen, making sure that Grant is not in the house yet before making the call.

“I was hoping to hear from you, darling” Daniel says.

“You were right. John Garrett is working on the centipede project to find a cure for himself. That last ingredient is a serum that can regenerate tissues and organs; it’s what brought Agent Coulson back. They’re close to finding it”

“And how is that going to happen?”

“I don’t know. But it involves Ward’s shield team, you don’t have to worry about it”

“Oh, but I do. You see, Ophelia, one of the most important things in our organization is loyalty, I can’t trust a man that goes behind my back for his own convenience, especially if he’s going after such an interesting… substance”

“Is that even possible?”

“It is. I’ve seen something like that before, and for what I know from its origins, it’s something that we need to have. So you’re going to get that for us”

“Father…”

“What, Ophelia? I believe you’re completely capable of doing it. Oh, and after you’re finished there, leave Agent John Garrett to die, and bring Grant Ward to me. He’s still a valuable asset, are we clear? Because I would hate to do the same to you”

“We’re clear, father”

“Excellent. I hope to hear from you when you have the serum”

“Yes father”

She hangs up, sighing with frustration, but when she turns around the barrel of his gun is aiming between her eyes from where he’s standing, close to the door, the bag of groceries still in his arm.

“Grant, I can explain”

He shakes his head “Shut up, and get dressed. We’re getting out of here”

* * *

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't you just love cliffhangers?


	4. Desperation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Grant takes Skye to John's underground base in Cuba, but then she refuses to find the serum for them and things go as bad as expected.

“Grant, just listen to me” She begs, but only feels the cold metal of his gun on her back when he pushes her. “Do you think that this is really necessary?” She says, reaching down for her pants and her shirt. “I’m not an idiot, I’m not going to attack you”

 “Shut up and get dressed!”

 “What are you planning to do anyway? You have to get back to your team”

 “Not if we go now. It’ll give us a head start”

She turns, closing the buttons of her white shirt. “I didn’t tell him everything, but I had to tell him something. Grant, that’s why-“

“Yeah. That’s why you’re here, to find out what was John’s plan and report to Whitehall. Got that very clear”

She shakes her head “What about all those sweet words and promises. I thought that maybe-“ She walks closer .

“Put on your shoes”

“Grant, please. I would never do that to you”

“Shut up, Ophelia”

“That’s not my fucking name! Grant, come on! We don’t have to waste time doing this. We can talk like adults”

“I don’t need to hear another word,” He says and his finger moves to the trigger.

“Come on, we both know that you’re not going to shoot me” She takes another step, but in that moment he squeezes the trigger.

She only catches a bright blue glow and then an intense sting of pain on her chest before everything fades to black.

 

* * *

 

She wakes up with a loud gasp, struggling to breath and immediately moving her hands to her chest as if she was looking for a bullet wound or blood, but there’s nothing, just a headache and she feels a little dizzy. There’s nothing under her half buttoned shirt but a small, dark blue stain.

It takes her a few seconds to figure out that she’s in a plane. She’s in her plane.

“Damn it” She says and clears her throat. It’s dark outside of the window and she doesn’t even know where she is and… well, the pilot’s body is outside the cockpit. “Are you out of your freaking mind, Ward!” She yells and kicks the man to the side so she can open the door. “What the hell did you do to me?”

“You should be thankful that I didn’t shoot you with a real bullet, and if you don’t want to take another nap I suggest that you go back to your seat” He says without even looking at her.

“You killed my fucking pilot!”

“We needed your plane”

“You’re taking me to him” She says “Of course, because you’re nothing but his freaking lapdog”

“It’s not like that”

“You’re acting like an idiot Grant, and you need to listen to me”

“Yeah you’ve said that before, but I’m good. I’m not taking the risk”

“Because you know that I’m right”

“Because John was right. You’re nothing but a psychotic, manipulative bitch”

She sighs, “That’s what you think? As if John Garrett was any better. Has he done anything but using you as his weapon?”

“Go back to your seat”

“It stings, right? Because you know that it’s true. I know what’s like to live like that. I can tell you that a man like that doesn’t care about you”

He growls and hits a set of buttons violently before getting out of his seat “Get out of here!” He grabs her arms and pushes her out of the cockpit, ignoring her protests until she’s out and he pushes her before closing the door again.

She goes back and hits and kicks the door “I’m telling the truth, asshole!” She sighs in frustration and then goes back to her seat, ignoring the dead body in the middle of the cabin.

 

* * *

 

 He goes searching for her a couple of hours later, of course he does, because he’s an idiot, but she’s not in there. It’s not like there’s a lot of options so he goes to the small private room in the back.

She’s just getting out of the shower, only covered by a small robe.

“What are you even doing here?” She says.

He has a hard time trying not to stare at her body, but fails, long enough that Skye has to clear her throat to get his full attention.

“You were too quiet. We’re going to land in 20 minutes”

“Land, where? I mean you can, at least, tell me that”

“Cuba”

“Great. Cuba” She repeats and sounds irritated “John is there?”

“Yes. Get ready”

“You know, you don’t have to do this. I never said that I wasn’t going to help you. I didn’t tell my father about the plan, but I had to tell him something”

“Then prove it, and help us”

“And then what? You’re going to kill me?”

He stays quiet, because that’s a possibility, it’s not like John likes to leave loose ends.

“Get out of here, Ward” She says.

He doesn’t move. He wants… he wants to reach for her and grab her hand and assure that everything will be ok.

“Get the hell out of here!” She yells, “Maybe I’m a manipulative bitch, but at least I’m not afraid of fighting for what I want. You’re just weak, and a coward, and I don’t want to speak to you, so leave. Now!”

And Grant leaves. He doesn’t say another word but he shuts the door close loudly, leaving her alone again.

 

* * *

 

A black SUV is waiting for them. Grant leaves the plane locked in a private hangar and another Hydra soldier puts the dead pilot’s body in the trunk to dispose of it later. The last thing they want is Daniel Whitehall finding where they are.

Grant sits with her in the backseat but she still doesn’t say a word.

She’s staring out the window, to the sunrise, and trying to figure out a way to make this work.

“Are you hungry or something?” Grant asks.

She doesn’t answer.

The Hydra soldier just looks at them through the rearview mirror, then Grant speaks to him. “How far is the base?”

“We’re close, we’ll be there in about 15 minutes, sir”

15 minutes of silence later they’re at John’s underground base.

Grant grabs her arm as they walk. John is waiting for them.

“Woah. What a nice surprise to have you here, Miss Whitehall” John says with an exaggerated smile and pressing his hands together “Heard you were going to help us with our little op, so please do tell us, what do you need to start? I’m sorry, I know, we’re in a bit of a rush here”

She smiles “I don’t need a dam thing because I won’t do anything for you”

A pause.

John looks at Grant.

Grant looks at Skye.

“What?” Ward says.

John smiles again, but this time he looks threatening “Is this some kind of joke?”

“Nope. I just don’t see what I get from any of this”

“How about your life?” John says.

“No deal”

“This is not a negotiation, girl. Let’s see if some alone time can help you change your mind. Kaminsky, take her downstairs, show her around, I’m sure she’ll be willing to cooperate soon” He orders.

“Wait” Grant tries to stop him “Ophelia, don’t be stupid” He just sees how the other agent grabs her arm “John…”

“We’re going to talk now, son” The man says as Kamisky takes Skye with him, she doesn’t even fight.

“There’s no need to do that”

“You told me that she was going to help us”

“Just give me some time, let me talk to her. I’ll fix this”

“You had your chance to fix this! Time is exactly what I don’t have right now. I have a team ready to go, and I need to get into Fury’s files _now_. I don’t give a shit about whatever your candy crush wants, she’s going to get that intel for me. So don’t worry, Kaminsky will take care of that”

* * *

She tastes her own blood in her mouth “You’ll have to do a lot better than that,” She says defiantly at the agent that just slapped her. She’s tied to a chair in the middle of a dark basement.

“Don’t make this any harder, if it’s not me it’s going to be the boss, and he’s not going to be this nice, believe me”

“Wow. Thank you, I’m touched" 

“Miss Whitehall, you don’t want to spend the night here. It’s cold, there are rats, definitely not a nice place for a nice lady”

She smiles “Let me tell you something, agent… Kamisnky, right?” She asks and the man nods “I’m going to be just fine, but you and your boss are going to end up dead, and let me guarantee you, it’s going to be slow and painful. I’m going to make sure of that”

“Let me guess, you’re gonna call your dad?” He leans closer.

She scoffs at that “Might not even need to do that”

In that moment Grant just kicks the door open, barely giving Kaminsky the chance to turn and look confused before Grant punches him in the face, almost knocking him down in a instant, then he just throws the agent against a wall, which finally renders him unconscious.

“Wow. Excellent timing, you have no idea” She says.

“Are you out of your goddamn mind?!”

“I don’t know, Grant, am I? If I’m going to get killed after this I might as well buy me some time”

He shakes his head, “He’s not-“

“I saw your face when I asked in the plane. I’m not an idiot”

He stops, gets closer, kneels in front of her and reaches for her bleeding lip “He won’t hurt you”

“Who’s going to stop him?”

“You just have to help us, and I’ll make sure of it”

“I think you’re in enough trouble for that” She nods at the unconscious man on the floor.

“John doesn’t care about that. He’s… he’s not that bad, he’s just running out of time and patience, he’s in pain”

“Do you think that it’s going to be over? You get this drug for him and then what? What are you going to do?”

“I leave“

“He’ll move on to the next mission, the next thing he wants. Not what you want, what he wants, and you’ll be there, Grant. It’s always going to be like that. He doesn’t care, he would sacrifice you if that would get him what he wants”

He looks down “Stop trying to put things in my head”

“I know about power, and know about men like him. It’ll never be enough; there’ll always be something, and what about you? What about what you want? Have you ever anted something for yourself?”

“Shut up”

“Would it be that bad? You just need to… wait, and then you’ll be free”

“Shut up!” And then his hand wraps around her neck tightly “Stop trying to mess with my head! I have a mission, and I’m going to complete it”

“You don’t…. owe him anything,” She manages to say as he increases the pressure. It hurts and she can barely breathe.

“You’re wrong”

“It’ll… not…”

She coughs and finally starts struggling in her chair, just then Grant lets her go, almost jumping back and away from her. Skye gasps, breathing fast and coughing.

“I’m- just get us the damn files, please”

“No. I won’t. You… have to realize… that he doesn’t care. It’ll never be over if he lives”

He stands up again, avoiding her eyes “You have the whole night to think about it, there’s not much I can do if you don’t help us”

“ _Him_ , if I don’t help him!” She says but he’s already leaving “Don’t be stupid, Grant, this is not what you want!”

But then he’s gone.

Agent Kaminsky only wakes up like half an hour later, and he doesn’t mouths a word. He looks pissed, and she's half expecting him to say something or try to hurt her again but he looks scared too, probably of what Grant could do. The man only unties her before leaving. There’s a bed and nothing else, no sheets or covers or a pillow, and it looks so dirty. It’s probably a better idea to stay in the chair.

It’s been a long time since her father locked her up but it still feels the same. She’s not scared. She’s angry.

As Daniel said, it builds character, it gives you time to think and focus on one single goal, and she has one. Grant Ward is still her ticket out of here; she just has to push the right buttons.

* * *

 

 

Grant slams his fist on John’s desk, but the man only looks amused.

“Don’t send any of those idiots down there”

“Or what?”

“If you want to make her cooperate, this is not how you do it. She’s not going to flinch because you lock her in a dark room”

“So girl’s a fighter,” John laughs, “Who cares?”

“Let me handle it”

“You’ve proven that you can’t. You’re a disappointment, and that’s why I’m here, taking care of your mess” John looks at his laptop “Ever heard of the rising tide?” He asks but Grant doesn’t answer, “I could just bring in here one of those low life, offer them a some money or whatever and they’ll get the job done”

“It’ll take time, Ophelia is already here”

John stands up, raises his voice “Then why isn’t she getting me the damned files! I don’t have the patience to deal with this! Tell me, what’s stopping me from putting a bullet in her head!”

“Don’t,” Grant says, not daring to look at John in the eye, with his hands clenched into fists.

“What was that?” John walks around the desk and in front of Grant “Are you… are you really asking me to spare her life?” He slaps Grant’s arm “What’s with those fists? You’re gonna hit me now? For that dumb bitch? I’m the only one that has been there for you, ever, and I’m only asking you one thing”

“And I’ve never asked you anything in return…”

“In return? You’re here because of me!” He pushes Grant “Look at me! Stop being weak, makes me not like you! Was I wrong when I took you in? That skinny, weak boy…”

He looks at John “I’m not a scared kid anymore. I’m not weak”

“Then prove it! Prove me that I wasn’t wrong!” John grimaces and reaches for his left side.

“John?”

The man groans in pain and leans back against the desk. Grant holds his arm. “Prove me that you can deal with this, Grant” John says, almost out of breath.

“Yes. I’ll do it. Just… breath, ok? You’re going to be just fine” Then he searches for the mechanical box that John keeps hidden in a shelf.

“You have one day. I’ll let you deal with her, ok? Figure out what’s her play. I trust you, son”

“Yes” He says, plugging the small cables into John’s side to help him with the pain.

 

* * *

 

There’s a soft knocking on her door later that day. It’s Grant.

“So you’re playing both the bad coop and the good cop…” She says when he walks inside the room.

“I’m not here to fight” He closes the door and leans against a wall.

“You think that I want to fight? You know that he’s going to kill me, right? You don’t care?”

“I… I wouldn’t let that happen”

“And why would I trust you? You brought me here, remember?”

“Don’t act so betrayed. You were working for your father all this time, screwing me to get some information”

She sighs and walks closer “Look, he did send me to find out what you were up to, but just because he knows already. He knows about John’s… situation. He had a file with all the schematics. He knows that you were using the centipede project to keep him alive”

“You told him about the serum”

“Yeah. Because he sent me to get it for him, whatever the last ingredient is. I was just buying time” She reaches for him and this time he lets her “Grant, if I would have told him that you want to expose Hydra we would had a hundred men on our asses right now. I just told him what he wanted to hear”

“And he wants the serum”

“Yes”

“Why?”

“I don’t know. He’s crazy about that kind of stuff”

He stares at her. “There’s one thing that doesn’t fit in this story”

“What?”

“Why are you doing all this? You’ll just burn to the ground everything you have, and your father…”

“I don’t care about any of that, or him”

“So you want to destroy him?” 

“I want him dead” She says and that clearly catches Grant by surprise.

“What did he do to you?”

“He stole my life. He turned me into whatever he wanted, whatever he needed”

His eyes meet hers, he can see the anger, all the hate and regret and pain, it’s not like Whitehall at all, her emotions run deep and she’s capable of a lot of things but she also feels all of it, she’s not cold like him.

“He’s not your father, is he?”

“Took you long enough”

 "How did you-“

“Find out?” She finishes for him “Well, first it’s not like I’m his living image”

 “So you aren’t 100% sure?”

“Not medically sure, but I just know it. He’s not my father; the stories that he has told me about my mother are all lies. He… treats me like another one of his projects, or experiments and I can feel it, just by looking at him, that something is not right”

“And what about your real parents?”

“I don’t know. But he took me for a reason, and if he did…” she swallows and looks down and Grant just can’t help it, he reaches for her arm, strokes it softly “He must have done something to them. I found some of his old files, it’s all on paper so it’s a lot, but there was something about a baby they took, and the dates match”

“You’re the baby?”

“I don’t know, and I don’t know why he wants me, I don’t know what’s so different about me, why he didn’t just kill me…”

“Was there something about your parents on those files?”

She nods and she’s sobbing, “Well… something about subject 819, a woman, but her file was missing. I don’t care about what happens to me, Grant, but I have to get out of here, I have to kill him” She looks at him “Do you believe that I’m telling you the truth?”

He nods.

“You said that you wanted to know me, the real me. This is me, but what about you? Was it real?” She places her hand over his chest and Grant just nods again.

“It is real” He covers her hand with his “I wouldn’t let John kill you. He won’t touch you. But you can’t ask me to let him die. I have to do this, and then I can help you, we could go-”

“I don’t want him to die, but I know he doesn’t care about me or you. He would kill you too“

“He won’t, just trust me” He says and cups her face with his free hand. “You just have to get the files”

“But I don’t trust him. I can’t do it”

He sighs, “Damn it, Skye”

“We can’t fight him, but we can get out of here, just us”

He moves away, shaking his head “Why do you have to make this so complicated?”

“It’s not complicated, it’s simple. You could finally get what you want” He looks at her “It’s what I want, too” She closes the gap between them again, this time reaching for the back of his head, pulling him down for a soft kiss and he just melts under her touch. “Isn’t this what you want?” His hands go to her hips and her back and he moans when she digs her fingers in his hair. “I’m already yours” She says against his lips “We just have to get out of here”

He nods again and she smiles before kissing him again.

* * *

 

 

She’s waiting for him that night. He’ll get ready what they need, a car, money, guns and then, when everybody’s asleep they can go. That’s the plan.

Or at least part of it.

Then they go back to Austria and Grant does the rest. If he fails she can always make something up, tell Whitehall that she couldn’t get the serum and Garrett died and then agent Ward was just looking for revenge.

If it was easy she would have done it herself years ago, but she couldn’t risk it. If her father found out about her real intentions he would just execute her and then what?

If they succeed they’re probably not going to make it out of her father’s house, but who cares? He’ll be dead and she’ll know it. It’s enough.

Grant knocks on the door again, opens.

But he’s not alone.

John Garret and a couple of soldiers follow him inside of the room. She almost jumps out of the chair, bemused.

“Hello. You don’t have to stand for us, miss… Skye, no last name” John teases.

She frowns at Grant. “What’s going on?”

“What’s going on is that the ball is in my court again” John says, “I know what makes you tick, sweetheart”

“You told him?” She looks at Grant “You son of a bitch, you told him!”

“Woah, there!” John says and raises his hands. She notices a subtle gesture of pain in his face. He’s also leaning his weight on his right side. “You want to make it out of here alive, right? Go deal with your daddy issues. I really don’t care” He pulls a gun out and aims it at her. “You just have to come with us, get into Fury’s files and then you can go and find someone else to do your dirty work”

“Come on, Skye. This is your best option” Grant pleads.

“Don’t speak to me again!”

“Don’t be mad at him. He’s following orders, like a good soldier. Now, I’m running out of patience here”

“Then you’ll have to shoot me, see if your soldier still wants to follow orders then”

John laughs at that “I figured you would say something like that. I have to give it to you, you’re quite smart, but you lack conviction” then his expression turns more serious and he tightens his grip on the gun “you lack desperation”

“John…” Grant says.

“And I know you want to kill Whitehall, sure, and you might be afraid of dying without being able to do it and get your little revenge, but if I kill you now that wouldn’t accomplish anything, right? So I want to test another theory…” He says and then turns to Grant, aiming his gun at him now.

And she shouldn’t really care, because she’s mad at him now, because she told him all those things and then he exposed all her weaknesses to John Garrett, but more than anything she’s scared. “Wait!” She says without meaning to.

“Now we’re talking”

Grant barely reacts, looks at John confused and helpless, as If he couldn’t defend himself.

“I’m going to give you desperation” John says and then pulls the trigger.

She sees Grant try to cover the wound as the blood gushes out of him, then he’s falling, still looking at John in disbelief and she’s just standing there, paralyzed and terrified and heartbroken.

He can’t die.

She’ll rip John Garrett’s heart out of his chest with her bare hands if Grant dies, in fact…

She runs to him in a second, she spits in his face and curses him and fights when the two soldiers grab her.

John laughs before punching her in the face so hard that she falls to the ground, next to Grant, then he cleans his face with his own sleeve.

“Ward!” She grabs his chest forgetting about everything else “Grant!”

“You know what the serum does, right? I think you’re going to need it now”

“I’m going to kill you,” She mumbles, covering Grant’s wound with her hand, placing it over his and caressing his cheek softly.

“Take him”

One of the soldiers grabs Skye and then more men come inside to carry Grant’s body out.

He’s still looking at John, but then at her, trying to raise his hand and reach for her as the blood just drips to the floor.

She’s punching and kicking in the air, and manages to break free just before the soldier grabs her again. “Where are you taking him?!”

“He’s going to be fine, but he doesn’t have a lot of time, so I suggest you start working now” John says “We have everything you might need and if I hear another word, you’ll have to do all that with a bullet in your leg, you heard me?”

She doesn’t answer to that, just stares at him and then nods.

She’ll make sure to erase that smug smile from his face. She’ll make him suffer for this, she won’t get out of here without seeing this man die and hearing him scream and beg for his life. John Garrett should have never underestimated just how much conviction she has.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, look at that! another cliffhanger.
> 
> Sorry, no smut this time, and all that angst. Also there will be more betrayal and lies, it's not over guys.
> 
> Oh and of course there will be more smut.
> 
> Up next: Skye has to think about her real feelings and figure out a way to save Grant, making a complicated choice.
> 
> Tell me what you think!


	5. Change of plans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Skye has to try a different approach as she realizes that her priorities might have changed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, I promise good things are coming in the next one hehe

John is expecting everything, he expects insults, and he expects her to fight and try to rip his fucking head off, the cute little thing.

He’s definitely not expecting to see her smiling, sitting in the room that they prepared for her. He’s intrigued.

“Hello John” She says and laces her fingers together. “I see you have all the toys here. Having you here will make things so much easier though; I’m going to need your access codes. It’ll speed up the process” She says and then goes back to the computer. John sits down in front of her, crosses his arms and leans back on the chair.

“So what’s your plan?”

“Easy. I just have to find the level 10-“

“Don’t bullshit me, kid. You know what I’m talking about”

She doesn’t move her eyes off the screen, keeps typing. “I do have a plan. I figured I should just drop the act and try to benefit from this situation”

“So, Ward…”

“I’m not here to talk about Ward. I’m here to talk business. First things first, you’re not getting shit from me unless you cooperate”

“I don’t think you’re in position to ask anything from me”

“Cool, then shoot me in the face, go get another hacker, take your time to find him, bring him here, then have the poor idiot take a week doing what I can do in a day, see how that works for you”

He pulls out his gun “Ok, that sounds like fun” He says but she doesn’t even flinch, she just lifts her hands from the keyboard. 

“You know that you’ll have both Hydra and Shield on your ass before you can find it. My father will-”

“He’s not your father, sweetheart. You’re alone on this one”

She chuckles “Yeah. Of course he told you that too”

“You just needed someone to do the dirty job for you” John says, leaning forward and lacing his forearms on the desk.

She does the same “I still do”

“It’s suicide”

“It’s a deal, and I have a plan” she smiles and raises an eyebrow at him “Think about it, what are you going to do when my- when Daniel figures out that I didn’t come back with the serum?” She waits for John’s reaction, he just narrows his eyes at her “Grant probably told you that too, didn’t he? You already made this personal for him, and trust me, right now you and I need the same thing. We need to kill him”

“I’m listening”

“The plan is simple. I don’t alert anybody, as I was planning to do, and get the serum location instead, you take it, and then you let me go back with the price”

“You think I’m that stupid? I’m not gonna let you take the serum”

“I don’t need the real serum. I just need to go back. Look, if you kill me you’ll have to deal with that problem too”

“Ok, go on”

“I can do it myself”

“They’ll gun you down the moment you lay a finger on him”

“That’s why I need to be alone with him” She smiles and leans back in the chair “I’ll take my chances. I can do it, will you get me out of there?”

“Are you asking?”

“I’m making you an offer. This can be the start of something that will benefit us both. When this all goes to hell, you’re going to need as many people, and resources as you can on your side”

“Let’s say I say yes. How does-“

“You get the location of your precious serum today. Everything you’ve ever wanted”

He presses his lips together and smiles. “Killing Daniel Whitehall, is that all what you really want?”

“As simple as that”

John chuckles “Sure. Ok, ok, I guess you got yourself a deal. But I’ll need to see that intel today”

“Not a problem”

He leans forward again, his expression changing into something threatening “But careful. If you even try something”

“What? You’ll put my head on a spike?” She mocks, not backing up.

“Even better. I’ll send your sorry ass back to Whitehall. I’m sure he’ll know what to do with you”

That actually makes her clench her teeth and feel the familiar chill up her spine.

“Now get to work, princess” John smiles again and then gets up to leave the room, joining Kaminski outside.

“Sir, Ward is awake,” The soldier says.

“Good” John chuckles “He’s gonna be pissed”

 “What are we going to do with the girl?”

“We’re going the play along for now. She seems cooperative but I don’t trust her. Once we get what we want, we’ll see” He says as the two men walk to the medical room.

“And then, are we going to keep her? I mean the  others wanted me to ask”

John frowns “What?”

“Well, for you, or Ward, or someo-“

“Ugh, come on, Kaminski. If you want a woman go get one, like a man. That’s not what we’re doing here!”

“Yes, I’m sorry sir”

“Go keep and eye on her, and just an eye, we’re not fucking animals”

“No, sir. Hail Hydra!” The man says and John rolls his eyes at that.

“Just go!”

The soldier goes and John continues to Grant’s room.

“You won’t believe what Kaminski just said”

John is laughing but Grant doesn’t seem too amused. He’s sitting against the headboard of the bed “What the hell were you thinking!” He winces when he feels the pain in his side.

John raises his hands “Woah. Calm down for a second, would you? You’re gonna hurt yourself”

“You shot me!”

“You’ve been shot plenty of times, don’t be a pussy about it now”

“I’ve been shot by enemies, during missions, not-“

“This is a mission, son. Come on. You’re fine. You know that if I wanted to hurt you, I would have. The bullet didn’t touch any organs, it was just a little blood”

“A little blood?” He says and takes a deep breath, trying to fight the need to close his eyes. He’s still tired, in pain and the meds are still in effect.

“You need to rest. I just wanted to check on you, say that I’m sorry but I needed to try a different approach. I mean, if I had known that she didn’t give a shit I wouldn’t have done it. My bad”

Grant swallows and his head falls back to the pillow. “”Where’s… where’s Skye?”

“She’s working. She only wanted a deal” John chuckles “I’m sorry, son. She didn’t even ask for you, I guess I was wrong on that one. You just need to face the truth, the only person that has ever cared about you is me, that’s how it is and that’s how it’ll always be”

Grant looks at John again “Where?... What did you do with her?”

“I told you. I didn’t do a damn thing. Only thing she cares about is to kill Daniel Whitehall. I mean it’s not a bad thing. We made a deal and she’s working now” He says and then approaches the side of the bed “I’m sorry. I know it sucks to get shot. But come on, cheer up. We’re so close to get this. Everything we have wanted for so long” he grabs Grant’s arm “You need to rest now. I need you to get back on your feet for the mission, ok?”

Grant nods.

“And about the girl…I’m gonna leave it to you”

Then he leaves.

Grant is still having a hard time trying to stay awake, but he’s thinking about her. He’s fading, closing his eyes for a moment and something hearing sounds in the base.

He still wants to know if she’s fine. It makes sense, he always knew that she was up to something, and apparently she just want to kill Daniel Whitehall more than anything.

He dreams with her. He has nightmares. She laughs as he’s at her feet, bleeding and dying and begging. John is there, too. He’s telling him that he’s weak, he can’t see his face but he hears his voice. He hears sounds of people moving and he wants to leave, he wants to go somewhere but he can’t even move. Something is pulling at his wrist and it hurts when he tries to pull back.

But then he opens his eyes again and Skye’s there, right next to him.

“Grant?”

He looks confused, is this still part of his dream?

“Are you ok? We don’t have much time”

“What are you doing here?”

“John’s gone. We need to get the hell out of here”

He tries to sit, already feeling a little better, but his side still hurts. “How?”

“They left just one soldier watching me and I knocked him out with a keyboard”

He just frowns.

“Come on, Grant!” She tries to pull him “Can you walk?”

“I thought you hated me”

“Yeah. I fucking hate your guts right now, but I figured we could do couples counseling when I’m not waiting for John Garrett to come back and chop my head off”

“What?”

She sighs “Listen. I found the serum, but… I sent the intel to someone else” She waits for him to say something but he doesn’t “I sent it to Coulson”

“You did what? Why would you do that?”

“Because it was either that or my father, and whatever that thing does, I think the world doesn’t want that in his hands. I got us enough time, it's very far and we can escape now”

“You just exposed this whole operation, you exposed me”

“I didn’t. I have a plan, you have to believe me”

“Yeah. You have a plan, a plan that works for you, a plan to kill Witehall and walk out”

“Don’t be stupid. John tried to kill you, Ward. I'm just tryng to-”

“He tried to do something because you were to damn stubborn to save a man’s life!”

She takes a moment, now she’s confused “He didn’t give a shit about you!”

“No! _you_ didn’t.”

“Fuck, Ward. Fuck you! Why do you have to make this so damn complicated! He’ll probably come back and he’s going to kill me”

“Yeah, it’s all about you, like everything is”

She takes a deep breath, lets her head fall back and stares at the ceiling for a moment, then she shakes her head and looks at him again “ _This_ is about you. He shot you in front of me and I felt… I never thought that I would hate someone as much as Whitehall, but he- he wouldn’t hesitate to kill you if that means he gets what he wants, and he made you believe that you have to accept it. He will kill me just to show you that he has all the power over you, that you don’t get to fight for anything that is not for him, and I… can’t see that” She looks down “I felt like that, in a way, I never thought that I could want to do something for someone else, but the only thing in my mind was getting you out of here and make him pay for what he’s done to you. I've never doubt about how much I hate Whitehall, but for the first time in my life something just mattered more”

He starts moving, trying to get off the bed.

“And that’s the truth, maybe you just want to go and tell him that too”

“Skye…”

He wants to reach for her, but then someone kicks the door open, one of the soldiers with a small bleeding wound on his temple and the other armed with a gun.

“Here you are” The first man says.

“Believe whatever you want to believe,” She says as the men take her.

“Put the prisoner back in her cell, John will deal with her when he comes back” Grant orders.

 

* * *

It’s early in the morning when John comes back and he’s pissed. He pushes out of his way the first soldier that tries to approach him, and the rest of the team just follows in silence.

He walks straight to the computers room. She’s not there.

“Where the hell is she?!”

“Sir…” one of the soldiers says.

“Get me that bitch right now!”

“Sir, she’s in her cell” The soldier that was assigned to watch on her appears, but then John grabs him by his shirt and pushes him against a wall 

““Why?”

“Agent Ward’s orders. She hit me and-“

John grabs the man by his shirt and pushes him against a wall “You think that I give a shit!”

Johns lets him go and then starts walking to the cells, passing by the medical room. Grant sees him and then gets up to follow him.

“John?” Grant says, holding his side and struggling to catch up with him. “What happened?”

“What do you think? Your stupid crush lied to us, there was nothing but ruins, and they destroyed everything. Someone got there before us”

“And what are you going to do?”

“Well” He stops “I’m going to cut her fingers one by one until she tells me what the fuck happened, do you have a problem with that?” He doesn’t miss the way Grant clenches his jaw “Do you know something that I don’t?”

“Sir…”

“I’m in the middle of something, Kaminski”

“Sir, I’m sorry, but they found us”

John closes his eyes “Who?”

“There are two Shield agents in the barber shop, a man and a woman, they have back-up outside, at least two teams”

“I guess they are not here for a hair cut”

“Should we evacuate, sir?”

“No, let’s give them a warm welcome” John orders and then speaks to Grant “Go get a gun a your girlfriend”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please tell me what you think!
> 
> Up Next: Team Bus! and Grant has to make a life changing decision. Plus... Whitehall is still there.


	6. Out of the shadows...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Skye and Grant are in Coulson's custody, but with Garrett on the loose and Hydra coming out they need a plan to escape.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to change the idea for this Chapter. There's a little twist at the end. Be patient. The next one will be just smut to compensate hahaha

“I’m going to give one more chance to clear this mess. What’s your name?” Agent Coulson asks. She recognizes him from the pictures on his file. He looks very alive for a dead man.

 “I gave you what you needed. I gave you the clairvoyant. You don’t need to keep me in here”

 “You’re wrong, miss. You see… I’ve got a beaten up, unconscious agent and a girl who claims that other agent, who conveniently escaped, is a traitor”

 “I sent you that intel, Fury’s bunker-”

 “That’s all classified information, which is already a lot of trouble for you. We don’t know who you are or why you were there, or what you want, which is why we’re taking you to a SHIELD facility. It’s not my call, and you’re not making things any easier for me to help you”

 She sighs, looks around and searches the small room. There’s nothing but a table and two chairs, and very secure walls. “My name is Skye”

 “Is that your real name?”

“More real than anything else I could say”

“What were you doing there?”

“I’m good with computers, crazy good. John Garrett took me so I could find the GH serum for him. He didn’t only need it for his super soldiers; he needs it because he’s dying. That’s why he came up with that clairvoyant bullshit, to start the project, get the founding and then use it to find a cure for himself. He needed me to find out how they brought you back”

Coulson just stares at her, confused, angry.

 “Yeah. He knows,” She says. “By now I assume you have taken a look at the files about your dea-“

“My man. Grant Ward. He went awol in Italy”

“I know that. He found out that Garrett had me and went there to save me”

“You two know each other?” He asks and Skye nods “John Garrett is Ward’s mentor. He recruited and trained him…”

“And yet he didn’t hesitate to shoot him”

“Why did he do that?”

“Because I didn’t want to cooperate” She looks down “He did it in front of me, things went horribly wrong and I did what I could. I knew about this team. I thought that you could stop Garrett so I sent the message, that’s it.”

“It doesn’t make sense that Agent Ward decided to ignore protocol and do something like that on his own”

“I don’t know. Ask him”

Coulson takes a moment before speaking again “I have to ask…What kind of relationship do you have with agent Ward?”

She looks at Coulson again “I- a complicated one”

 

* * *

 

 “So, what do you think?” Coulson meets the rest of the team back in the commanding center; they’re all gathered around the hollotable, watching the monitors.

 Agent May speaks first “I don’t think she’s lying but that doesn’t mean that she’s telling the whole truth”

“I know” Coulson replies “It doesn’t make sense. If Garrett is really the clairvoyant how did Ward and this girl end up in the middle of it? You think she’s his girlfriend or something?”

“He never talked about a woman” May adds, but then Fitzsimmons start mumbling, which make Coulson and May turn their heads to them.

“Well, actually…” Jemma starts.

“We caught him once texting with someone” Fitz says

“He seemed happy”

“Yeah. He was smiling like and idiot. It was so weird” Fitz adds.

“Fitz…” Coulson says “so you guys think he was in contact with someone, while he was here?”

“Oh… yes, maybe, but not like-” The couple of scientists say at the same time.

“He said that he didn’t want you to know, sir, because he was 100% focused on his missions”

“He said that it wasn’t important”

“Apparently, it was…” Coulson says staring back at the monitors. They have a split screen with a video feed from the cage and then the medical pod with Ward.

“It’s possible that Ward knew” May says and then all eyes are on her “Agent Garrett was his S.O.” She adds.

“We’ll have to wait until he wakes up to find out” Coulson says “Confirm our course to The Hub”

 

* * *

 

Skye hears a soft knocking on the door, which is weird… she’s supposed to be a prisoner, right?

It’s a young woman, carrying a tray with food and a bottle of water.

“Are you supposed to be the good cop?”

“Oh. I would like to believe that we’re all the good cops” She replies in a British accent. “I’m doctor Jemma Simmons” She leaves the tray on the table. “I thought you would be hungry”

“Wait… are you Ward’s doctor? Is he ok?”

“Uhm. I’m not that kind of doctor. But I’m doing the job while we’re back on the ground. He’s stable, he’ll be fine”

“And what about Garrett do you know anything about-?”

“I’m sorry. I’m not supposed to give you that information”

Skye presses her lips together “Right. I’m the prisoner” She says and reaches for the water bottle. Off course it has a damn Shield logo on the label “You’re the good guys” She finishes in a sarcastic tone before taking a sip.

“Ward will wake up soon” Jemma says, “I’ll let him know that you’re here and safe”

“I guess it would be stupid to ask you if I can see him”

“It’s understandable, but not possible”

“Thanks for the food, doc”

Jemma nods and then leaves the room, and then… nothing.

Nothing for hours.

It’s not like she really knows how much time has passes. She doesn’t have a watch or a laptop, not even her phone.

She knows she’s in a plane but she doesn’t know what’s going to happen now, she needs to see Grant now. She’s officially run out of ideas.

Pacing around the room doesn’t help, but the signal she’s been asking for comes hours later, in the form of a very abrupt turbulence that makes her loose her balance and almost fall.

“What the hell was that!” She yells at the camera in the corner of the room “What’s going on? The plane is still shaking! Are we under attack now, or what?. You can’t just leave me here!”

Then, Agent Coulson burst through the door, he and the doctor and another young guy. They’re carrying an unconscious woman, she recognizes her from the attack back at John’s base.

“What’s… did you kill her?” Skye asks.

The two young agents put the woman down on the floor.

“She’s not dead. But we don’t have time to del with this right now. Are you really that good at what you do? Because this is your one chance to show us that you really want to help”

She might have just one idea left. “What do I need to do?”

 

* * *

 

“This is messed up. There’s no communications and I’m trying to find the signal that’s controlling the plane but I’m getting so much noise, it’s like… some sor of encrypted message” Skye says, taping on the hollotable. “Fitz, how are we with that satellite connection?”

“Still working on it” The engineer’s voice comes out of the speakers.

“Maybe that message is from HQ? maybe they know what’s happening?” Simmons asks.

“We can’t do a damn thing from here” Coulson says and then they get an alert on one of the screens”

“Seems like we’re not alone” Skye says.

Coulson approaches the screen “Damn it. Fitz, get up here, we need to get out weapons back”

 "I’m coming sir” They hear and then Coulson leaves, leaving the two women alone.

“What the hell? This a freaking drone… Are they going to shoot us out of the sky?”

“I’m sure they’ll find a way…” Simmons says.

“Who could be-“

“What?”

 kye is staring at the screen and it’s… it can’t be possible. She taps again; there might be a way to decipher the message.

It only takes her a minute. It’s a phrase. Simmons is staring at the big monitor behind Skye. “What’s that? Is it a code?”

“It’s… “

The letters appear slowly, but she already knows what it’s going to say.

“Out of…the… sha...dows?” Simmons reads. The whole phrase is soon completed. “That’s impossible. What does that mean?”

“I- I.. don’t know, wasn’t that like…” Skye clear her throat “ A WWII thing…?”

“Yeah. Something that doesn’t exist anymore” Jemma approaches the table and hits a button “Sir, you really need to see this”

“A little busy here” Coulson replies.

“We should just… keep working. I mean, we have to take the plane back. Whatever is happening is nothing good” Skye swallows and goes back to her work.

She just nods and tries to make appropriate face gestures while the scientist’s keeps talking, but this doesn’t even make sense. It’s not possible that they’re going public now, why?

Maybe this could be Garrett, or Whitehall. Something must have happened.

Suddenly the plane shakes violently again, and they hear the sound of more alarms.

“Did we get hit?”

“We’re good” Coulson says through the intercom “Fitz is going back down. We need to get the hell out of here”

 

* * *

The commander stares blankly at the monitor; as if he’s trying to understand, or find something that they missed.

“No one’s answering, but I think I might we might be able to get the plane back, which raises an important question. Do we have a pilot? Because we would be flying blind, basically, and no automatic controls…” Skye says.

Coulson sighs, “We do”

“Ok. I’m done here. The is up to Fitz, so… I think we had a deal”

The man turns to her “You’ll have to wait”

“Hey! You said I helped here and you would let me see him. That’s exactly what I did”

“You don’t get it, do you? If any of this is real, I can’t… you just appeared, in the middle of a very strange and suspicious situation. Now we have this” He points at the monitor “this is not right, something is not right, and you’re still our prisoner”

“So are you going to put me back in that cell with your unconscious ninja? Do I even need to ask what happened with her?”

“Sir” Simmons interrupts “He’s not even awake, I can go with her. You need to deal with… other things”

Coulson looks back at the monitor, and then at the two women “You have 10 minutes”

 

* * *

 

“He’s in a lot of pain killers,” Simmons said as she opens the door to the med pod. “He has two bullet wounds and the stitches were opened again in the fight, so I had to patch him up again, but I think he’ll be just fine. Give him time”

“Garrett did it. Grant didn’t even try to defend himself,” Skye says, reaching for his hand. “He was just trying to get me out”

“When we found you, you were alone”

“I shot him, but he escaped”

“Oh…”

“I should have killed him”

“You know, you really shouldn’t be telling me that”

Skye sobs, touches the bruises on his chest. “I just… I never thought I would care this much, about someone. I never felt like that before. Do you have someone like that? I mean, when I think about it everything just comes down to him”

“I get it” Simmons says. “I’m sorry. I know that Ward is a good man. He saved my life, jumped out of this plane to save me”

Skye smiles “I understand if you say no, but could you just give me a minute with him?” she speaks again before Jemma can respond to that “We have been through so much in the last couple of days…”

Jemma finally nods “Just a minute ok?”

“Thank you” Skye smiles, letting a tear roll down her cheek, and then the scientist leaves.

She turns back to Grant. She’s not crying anymore “Ok sleeping beauty… I know you’re awake, so hear me out cause I gotta be quick. There was a complication” She says and then squeezes his hand, handing him a small piece of paper. “We have to get out of here, so you better get on your feet fast before this people kill us both, ok honey?” She gives him a soft kiss on the lips and he squeezes her hand back. “We’re so screwed”

She takes a deep breath and puts on her best sad face before going out again.

* * *

 

The news spread fast. Steve Rogers, once again, has destroyed everything. But there's a reason why they say cut off one head and two more shall take its place. With Alexander Pierce dead there's no more reason for them to keep wasting time in weaponry and obsolete means of destruction. Like The Baron had said it's an age of miracles, science and knowledge way beyond the human limitations. Hydra will now do what they do best, let them think that they're are defeated, only to come back stronger than ever. He's going to meet Von Strucker at his castle in Sokovia to discuss the next step. He's close to uncover the secrets of the diviner.

It's true that most of it is based on legends and ancient tales, but they're true. Hydra knows all about it, a true superior race, something above humanity itself, and he has seen it with his own eyes.

He takes another sip of his drink and looks at Bakshi, sitting in front of him in the Limo "Is something wrong Mr. Bakshi?"

"I'm sorry, doctor Whitehall. It's... it's about your daughter"

He frowns "Has Ophelia contacted us yet?"

"No, sir. This is a message from John Garrett, I think you might want to read this" He says and hands his tablet to Daniel.

He takes a moment to read.

"Sir?" Bakshi asks.

"Tell the driver to turn around. We're going to the airport"

"Immediately, sir"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Up Next: The team Bus finds the Providence base, Skye and Grant plan to escape together but now both Garrett and Whitehall are after them.


	7. Fear not the path of truth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the aftermath of the Hydra reveal Skye and Ward finally have a moment alone at the Providence base. Coulson has a proposition for Skye and Grant has to make a choice before the team discovers the truth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also... Providence base smut.

If Daniel would only know where she’s right now… with a Shield team, in one of Nick Fury’s secret bases in the middle of nowhere. And yes it got a little crazy out there and for a second she thought that this Coulson guy had lost it but it was not like she had a lot of options. At least Grant and her had a solid story and the team seemed to believe it.

 This little guy, on the other hand, Agent Koening, doesn’t look so happy about the small crowd in his base right now.

 “I’ll have to clear the members of your team. Separately,” He says to Coulson as they walk down the hallway “I’m sorry but I wasn’t expecting that. Only agent Coulson, that was the memo, and you show up here with a woman in handcuffs and another one that isn’t even an agent!”

 “I’m sorry” Coulson says, “I know that this situation is less than ideal but we didn’t have a lot of options, or fuel. We were barely able to take back our plane… actually the woman that’s not an agent helped us out with that one” He shrugs.

 Fitz and Simmons are walking to each side of agent May, they don’t even dare to touch the woman but it doesn’t seem like she wants to escape.

 Finally, there’s Skye helping Grant walk with his arm over her shoulders.

 He has not say a word but at least he’s working their story. It’s not like it doesn’t make her nervous. He could break any second, she saw it happen in Cuba and he looks so tense and out of it, as if there’s a million thoughts in his head right now.

 Once they’re in the kitchen area Agent Coulson stops to uncuff Agent May. “I’m sorry, but I had to take some measures”

 “Here we are in total lock-down” Koening says “No one gets in and no one gets out” he looks at the rest of the team to emphasize his words.

 “Ward” Coulson says, “I need a moment with you first, if you’re feeling up to it”

 Grant nods “Yes, sir”

 Skye wants to kick him “No, sir! He’s still in pretty bad shape and he had to walk in the snow like that for hours” She protests “He needs to rest and, I don’t know, eat something… Doc?” She looks at Simmons

 “Oh… well, she might be right” Jemma says “It was extenuating enough for all of us and in Ward’s condition he shouldn’t have done it. His wounds need attention”

 “It wasn’t a request, Agent Simmons, it was an order”

 “Really? Because I thought that at this point everything we’ve been doing is basically sticking around for the lack of better options” Jemmas says, earning a surprised look from Fitz “If we’re stuck here we will have time for an interrogation”

 “Jemma…” Fitz whispers but she ignores him. Everyone is just quiet and Skye can just feel the tension between the team members.

 “Then, until you have better options, I suggest you keep doing what you are asked” Coulson speaks to the whole team “Agent Koening will show you where you can stay” then he speaks to Ward “Come with me”

 Grant nods and then follows him.

* * *

 It’s a small bedroom but it looks kind of home-y, at least for a secret base. She’s been in places like this before and it certainly doesn’t help to calm her nerves.

 Ward is speaking to Coulson alone and they barely could talk about things… or yell about things to be more specific, before SHIELD was breaking into John’s secret base.

 He’s not an idiot, but he does have more options than her. It would be his word against hers.

 She sits on the bed and waits, then takes a moment to check the room for any vigilance devices, then sits again, then checks the room once more.

 It’s almost an hour later that Grant opens the door, followed by Simmons so she puts on her concerned face again.

 “He should have given you some time. It was irresponsible; he’s just being reckless with this. We’re still in the middle of nowhere, with no plane and-“

 “Simmons…” Grant says, “It’s ok. It’s been difficult for everyone, but we’re still together, just give him some time”

 Jemma looks at Skye, then at Grant “You sure you don’t need anything else?“

 “I’m ok. I just want to lay down for a bit,” He says and the scientist nods.

 “And you?” Jemma asks Skye.

 “Oh… uhm… I’m fine, and I can keep an eye on him. Don’t worry”

 Jemma offers them a small smile, then she pats Ward’s arm and leaves the room, closing the door behind her, which leaves just the silence.

 It’s basically the first moment they have had alone since Cuba, like really alone, she checked the room like three times to make sure of that.

 Grant turns around; gone are the signs of his injuries, he’s still bruised and wears the scars of the fight, but he doesn’t seem to have any difficulty to move. He reaches inside his pockets and takes the small piece of paper and tosses it at her feet.

 “Coulson wants you gone” He says.

 She knows that it’s the same piece of paper that she gave him back at SHIELD’s plane with the news of the Hydra reveal.

 “What did you tell him?”

 “What do you think?”

 She takes a small step “I think that he’s not here trying to kill me, so…”

 “Maybe that’s what I should have done”

 “Do you regret it? Coming back for me-“

 He avoids the question “Why would you tell Simmons that you shot John?”

 “Because we don’t know where he is and they need to think that he’s not going to be a threat, at least for a little while, that’ll give us some time to-“

 “To do what exactly?”

 “I don’t know, Grant. Get out of here? You chose to do this. I didn’t make you do anything”

 She sees him clench his jaw. He avoids her eyes.

 She sighs, “Don’t expect me to apologize for being to only one trying to save both of us”

 “Is that all?” He finally asks “That’s all you want? to save both of us. No games”

 “What the hell do you mean with that?”

 “It means that you put us in this mess in first place when brought Coulson into this! I could have handled it. It wasn’t your call”

“Are you fucking serious? You took me to him, you told him everything! He shot you! So I made the call that you couldn’t make. I… don’t know how to do this” She says and Grant looks as if he’s just out of words “this fighting and this… I’m way over my head here; I’m trying to figure things out step by step. I had to get us out of Cuba, and I know that you’re acting like this because of him. I get it, I mean I get why you feel like that, but he deserved it. If he dies without the serum, so be it”

 He approaches her with clenched fists and a furious expression.

 “What are you going to hit me? Or choke me again? Go ahead!”

 “Shut up, Ophelia” He interrupts her, closes his eyes.

 She’s about to protest because she fucking hates to hear that name, and he knows it, but there’s no point because he’s doing it on purpose “You don’t get to be mad at me! He didn’t care, Grant. You know it”

 She hears something that might sound like some kind of growl coming from him, he’s breathing loudly and he’s angry. He looks at her again. “Stop trying to manipulate me! Maybe you’re right about him, but you are just as bad”

 “Yeah. I am. And yet you didn’t tell Coulson the truth, or he would be here, pointing a gun at my face” She takes a step closer. “You see, Grant, if I wanted to keep playing you I would, and I could get away with it, there’s nothing you can do about it”

 He growls again, this time gripping her jaw to make her shut up. He pushes her back until her head hits the wall and she can only reach for his wrist but she doesn’t try to break free, she just swallows, staring at him defiantly.

 Grant stares at her too, lost for a second, even vulnerable, but then she recognizes the familiar glint in his eyes.

 Then, he’s kissing her, roughly and without letting go off her face, he makes feral sounds and completely presses her body between his and the wall, as if he’s trying to prove a point, maybe that he can take control, that he can do as bad as she does.

 His free hand moves down, gripping her ass as he pushes his tongue inside her mouth, but Skye doesn’t hold back. He feels nails on his back and his shoulders and her teeth biting his lip until he pulls back, panting and looking at her like a predator.

 And she leans forward chasing his lips again but he stops her, pushing her head against the wall again.

 “Tell me the truth,” He demands.

 “What I told you at the base was the truth, and I fucking hate you Ward, but I’m with you; and I know that you could have followed him, but you came with me and that has to be enough”

 “I don’t regret it,” He says, loosening the grip of his hand and moving it to cup her face.

 She grabs his t-shirt and pulls him for another kiss, still as passionate as the first one and he’s immediately working the button of her pants, making impatient noises and pulling at the fabric.

 “You sure we can do this without hurting you?” She asks when his lips move down to her neck and Grant just nods, he’s already pushing her pants down. “Wait, wait!” She says and struggles to push him away.

 He looks disheveled and a bit lost but he lets out a relieved breath when she takes off her shirt, he’s eager to touch her. Skye just wraps her arms around his neck to kiss him again and starts walking towards the bed. She stumbles as she struggles to take off her boots, while Grant keeps moving backwards and unbuckles his belt. They never break eye contact, not even when he sits on the bed and Skye removes her pants and underwear in one movement.

 She crawls over him and Grant is happy to let her straddle his hips, placing his hands over hers and searching for the contact of her lips again, all he sees is her, she’s still on her knees and she has to lean down to kiss him.

 It’s a bit surreal; it might be the pain, the adrenaline of the last couple of days still flowing through his veins, or the fact that for the first time in his life he’s without purpose, but he feels like there’s nothing but Skye. She’s right about one thing, she could be playing him, she could do whatever the hell she want to do with him and there’s nothing he can do about it.

 He doesn’t want to fight it; her hair falls down around them, over his chest and his shoulders and face as her lips keep kissing him frantically. Skye has been a mistake since the first time he saw her, but she’s still the best mistake he’s willing to make after everything he’s been through. It’s terrifying but liberating at the same time, because if there’s at least a small chance that she’s being honest, he’ll take it, he’ll choose her.

 When he bites her lip she responds with a soft sigh, and he feels her nails on his scalp. He’s still fully clothed and Skye doesn’t seem to have time for that, as she just reaches inside his pants.

 “You’re so hard” She says, breathless, against his lips “I need you right now Grant” she needs to feel in control, because she needs him so much that it's scary. It shouldn't be a bad thing, to feel like there's someone on her side, but the problem is that she's not sure that he is, and she's not sure if she can handle the idea of not having him.

 He moans and grips her hips tightly when she pulls him out. He needs a moment to catch up to her but then his lips are moving down her neck and his hands wandering up her back until he can unclasp her bra to leave her completely naked before his eyes.

 “Skye...” He can only manage her name but she’s as lost as he is, moaning and closing her eyes when he sucks on her nipple, but there’s need and urgency and he knows that she’s feeling that to, as she guides his hand to her wet core.

 She moans loudly when he moves his fingers inside her, just to tease her a little bit. “What are you waiting for?” She breathes against his ear and that’s all the encouraging he needs before he wraps his arm around her waist to lift her body, just enough to let her place his dick against her entrance.

 “Oh God” He says, trying- and failing- to keep his eyes open, because when she pushes down he feels like he’s going to explode right there.

 “Fuck, yes!” She yells against the sweaty skin of his neck. “I hate you… so much” She says before her tongue licks at that sensitive spot she knows he has right under his ear, feeling his whole body shivering and then he’s pushing up to meet her thrusts.

 Skye is pressing her body against his, as much as she can, kissing his jaw, tugging at the fabric of his Henley until she almost tears it apart. She feels his hands on her sides and her breasts and then back on her ass and she loves how hot and strong they feel. She’s always been in control when it comes to men, but with Grant she likes to let him take over, she likes it when he holds her so tightly and explores every inch of her skin with his mouth, leaving marks and growling her name like a hungry wolf.

 He places his hands on her back and then flips them over to lay her down on the mattress in one swift movement and she gasps when he shifts the angle of their contact, he’s hitting all the right spots, he’s kissing and biting and she’s not going to last long; but then there’s a sudden thought that crosses her mind amidst her blissful state…

 “You’re going to hurt yourself” She says, almost out of breath and on the verge of tears and a mind-blowing orgasm.

 “I’m fine” He says, pushing harder and faster, reveling in all the little sounds she makes and the way she tries to bite her lip to prevent louder screams from getting out. “It’s worth it”

 “Shit!” She yells, holding onto his arms and arching her back against the bed “Grant…”

 “What? You hate me?” He’s so close, too. He feels his body tensing, his mind going blank.

 “No…”She smiles but then that turns into a scream and her nails on his shoulders as she finally comes, shaking and still smiling.

 And that’s when he lets go, pushing a few more times before it his him, turning the muscles of his arms into jelly, so he falls over Skye, panting and with her name on his lips.

 A couple of minutes later no one has said a word.

 And they stay like that even after Grant finally moves off her. He doesn’t leave her side though.

 She’s thinking. At first it could have been just because of her post orgasmic high but now there’s a thought that doesn’t go away. She knows that this is it. This is the moment. Grant would do anything if she asked, and there’s no John Garrett telling him what to do; but it’s like she doesn’t care? There’s this small voice in her head that she’s been trying to ignore for so long but now she can hear it loud and clear.

 She could leave it all behind. To hell with Daniel Whitehall and Shield, and Hydra. They could disappear, it wouldn’t be hard for people like them.

 Grant is staring at her, and she’s never been so afraid. The fact that she’s the one completely naked on the bed doesn’t help. She feels exposed and weak under his gaze. That’s what love can do to people, and she’s not about to throw everything out the window for a fairytale.

 “We could… go away,” she says.

 “Do you want to go away?” Grant replies, trying no to be too distracted by the fact that she’s still naked and now leaning on her elbow next to him.

 “With you. I want to be with you…” she looks down.

 “But?” Grant asks, because he feels the ‘but’ coming.

 “Wherever I go… he will find me”

 “Whitehall?”

 “I know this will sound like I’m crazy or that I still want to take advantage of you but I can’t live like that, and I can’t drag you into this because the moment he finds me, he’ll kill me, or worse… he’ll brain wash me and make me forget who I am. And he’ll do it, he’ll find me”

 She’s sobbing and Grant can see the tears rolling down her cheeks.

 “We could-“

 “My best shot is going on my own, that way you’ll be safe” she grabs his hand “I’m sorry about John, but you’re free now, and I know its hard, but you get to choose what comes next, you can start over… and this team-“

 She sees the struggle in his face; it’s something she learned to identify back in Cuba “I don’t want that. We can still kill him”

 “Ward…”

 “I chose you, didn’t I? I made that decision, I’m not backing down”

 “It could be suicide,” She says, leaning over him.

 “I’m not letting you go”

 Then she smiles and moves her hand up his chest “I don’t even know what to do”

 “We’ll figure something out. We’ll probably need to lay low for a bit after what happened with Hydra, until things calm down a little bit”

 “First we need to get out of here”

 “I can get us a plane if you can open the doors” He says and then grabs her hand, planting a kiss on her palm.

 “Sounds like a plan”

* * *

 

 She smiles as she walks down the silent corridors; it’s a big base for such a small group of people.

 They’re not bad people, she thinks, maybe by killing Daniel she’ll do them a favor. One less head to cut.

 So she shouldn’t feel bad about it. She wasn’t lying… not about everything. She still wants to go with Ward, maybe try a normal life? But this is something that she just has to do, even if it’s risky.

 Maybe it’ll work, maybe they’ll survive and have a chance together.

 “Skye!”

 A voice calls her, she recognizes Agent Coulson, inside one of the offices. She stops and steps inside.

 “Agent Coulson” She says.

 “I was about to send for you. Do you mind if we have a little chat?”

 “Not at all” She says and sits on the couch that Coulson points at her. The man proceeds to sit against a desk.

 “How’s Ward?”

 “Banged up a little, but he’ll be fine. He just needs some rest”

 Coulson nods “The last couple of days have been… difficult. Agent Ward explained your situation to me, and yes, he made a lot of bad decisions, but it’s not like there’s a protocol to follow now”

 “I don’t see what you’re getting at”

 “I know that you’re important to him”

 “He’s important to me”

 His lips curve up with the hint of a smile “We could certainly use your skills at this moment” he says “but I don’t trust you”

 “I don’t trust you either. Shield represents everything that I’m against”

 “And yet you worked with Ward in several missions, according to him, was that because you loved him or you had any other reason?”

 “I hated Shield, but Grant but he offered me a deal. He needed help with a mission back then and I… liked him, he was trying to make a decent citizen out of me, and then… it just happened, do you want all the dirty details?”

 “No, thanks. And he told me that same story. I still don’t buy it. I’ve meet people like you, and they’re nothing like _you._ The way you look, the way you talk and behave yourself…”

 “It’s because I’m a woman? Because I have a notion of personal hygiene? For a guy that’s used to deal with aliens and superheroes you’re not so good at keeping an open mind, you know? Have you only seen hackers on tv?”

 “It’s not the hacker part that I have a problem with…”

 “I don’t know what do you want me to say. I got sloppy and Garrett got me, Grant was trying to save me and save him… he was trying to make the best out of an awful situation before all this Hydra mess went down. I didn’t know that this was going to happen, he didn’t know”

 Coulson sighs, looks down before fixing his gaze on Skye again “I can't take more risks”

 “Ok, then let me go. I’m not asking to be here, you know?”

 “Unfortunately at this moment I can't provide a way to leave the base”

 “So… are you going to get rid of the problem?”

 “Gosh, no… we’re not like that. We’re not the bad guys”

 “Then, what do you want?”

 “I’ve given it a lot of thought, and I came to the conclusion that letting you go could mean that I loose one of the few men that I trust, and our team needs him right now. We can’t afford that, and I know him… he’s clearly made his choice” He stands up “I want to trust you, so I want you to be honest with me, and I want to offer you a place here”

 “You’re offering me a job?” She says, leaning back on the couch.

 “It’s not an official job, more like a chance to do good”

 “Do I get a badge?” She teases.

 “Probably not, and you still have to go through Koening’s tests to verify your story, like all of us”

 She frowns “Like a lie detector”

 “Something a little more advanced than that”

 “Ok, sure, then you’ll trust me?”

 “I don’t want to put Ward in a complicated position. He’s a good agent, and he believes in what he does, maybe you can feel the same way about what we do”

 She smiles and stands up to leave “I think it’s very noble, what you’re trying to do here. You’re still beating a dead horse, but whatever, count me in”

 "Thank you”

 “Nice chat… A.C.” She smiles and then leaves the room.

 She needs to find Grant, because they have to get the hell out of here sooner than they expected.

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading and don't forget to tell me your thoughts!
> 
> Next up: Grant has to deal with his struggle between the team, John and Skye when they have some time alone and away from everything, and that makes her reconsider her whole plan. Also Whitehall makes his move!


	8. Paint dreams and nightmares

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Grant and Skye leave the Playground together. After spending some time alone Skye starts to have doubts about her plan. Meanwhile Whitehall is back and he's not alone and Skye will have to choose if she wants to move forward or protect Grant.

He really wishes they had more options, but a tough as Skye is, she’s not going to be able to fool a lie detector. The problem is, there’s nothing in the hangar but the Bus, and that’s it, no helicopters or quinjets. Taking it means leaving the team stranded here, in the middle of nowhere.

But at least no one is getting hurt.

He needs to check is the plane has been re-fueled and leakage fixed. Fitz has been working on it since they got here.

“Hey!”

Speaking of the devil. Grant hears the engineer’s voice when he’s running upstairs, then comes back down to find him in the lab.

Crap.

“Hey Fitz!” He says with a smile.

“Hi” Leo replies as he walks out of the lab, carrying a small crate with tools and wires. “What are you doing here?”

“Uhm. I just needed to get something from my bunk”

“Are you feeling alright?

“Yeah. How’s our bird?”

“Almost ready to fly. Thankfully we had everything we needed here, especially fuel. We’re not getting anywhere without fuel, right?”

“So you want to get out of here”

“Oh yeah. Desperately”

Grant nods and smiles.

“Are sure you’re ok?” Fitz asks before Grant can speak again.

“Yeah”

“What about Skye?”

“Uhm…” He looks down “fine, she’s fine”

“She’s quite pretty, and smart, a clever one, yeah” Fitz continues “Why didn’t you tell us about her?”

That catches him a little off guard “I- It’s complicated”

"I get it. It must be nice…” Fitz says.

“What?”

“You know, you seem to really care about her”

“Fitz… everything is falling apart around us, we don’t know how it’ll end. If there’s something you want to tell Simmons, don’t wait”

Fitz frowns “What? Maybe Simmons should check you again for brain injury…”

Grant rolls her eyes at that “You know what, do what you want, I don’t-“ He stops when they hears someone else’s footsteps.

“Oh, Skye…” Fitz says, then he looks at Grant, then back at Skye and he seems a little confused. “What is she doing here?” He doesn’t mention the fact that she’s carrying a small bag but he clearly noticed.

Skye stops just outside of the cargo bay.

“Are you leaving?” Fitz says in a teasing tone and smiling but his voice cracks when he speaks again “Ward?”

“I can explain” Grant says, reaching back with one hand as Fitz takes one step away from him “You know I would never hurt you”

“Grant” Skye says, finally walking inside the plane.

“You… you’re our friend!” Fitz sobs. He sees Skye’s hand squeezing Grant’s arm softly “Is it because of her?”

Grant shakes his head “I’m so sorry” He finally takes his Icer and aims it at Fitz.

“We care about each other. You care about us! Don’t do it”

“You’re right, but-“

The engineer manages to throw the crate at Ward and then starts running, yelling Coulson’s name but he’s soon shot in the back, falling unconscious the next second.

Grant’s hand is shaking, even though he knows this is not a fatal wound.

Skye reaches for his out stretched arm.

“We need to go” She says, “It’s ok. He’s ok”

Grant blinks, it takes him a moment but then he’s quickly moving to get Fitz’s body.

“They have cameras everywhere. It won’t take them long to see this” Skye says as Grants carries Fitz next to a pile of supply crates.

He carefully places him there, taking a moment before going back to Skye.

She follows him in silence as he gets the plane ready for take off. He walks straight to the cockpit, getting in the pilot’s seat.

“You really can fly this thing? I mean it’s a lot bigger than mine” She teases, sitting next to him but he barely smiles.

“I can get us far enough. Our biggest concern right now should be if it’s ready to fly”

“Good to know that” Skye says and Grant keeps pressing buttons, all focused on his task.

“Damn it, we have a problem with the cargo door” Grant says. He seem impatient, a little on edge. “We can… I’ve got this. We just need to cross the American border and we’ll ditch the plane there”

“Grant…”

“I’ll get us there”

She reaches for his arm again and she can feel just how tense he is, but she makes him look at her “It’s ok. I know you’ve had to make a lot of complicated decisions”

“I made my choice,” He says grabbing her hand and kissing it.

He finally starts the plane “Buckle up” He says and she takes a laptop out her bag to get the hangar doors open. That will set all the base’s alarms.

This is probably the last time he’s going to see the team, and maybe some part of him is going to miss them, but he’s taking a bet here.

For the first time… ever, he feels like he’s choosing something that he really wants, and She’s right about the part that if Whitehall ever finds them they’ll be dead, the only way to ensure that they can have a chance is to eliminate the threat, and that’s what he does best.

 

* * *

He stares out of the window in his office. It’s a perfect view of Manhattan in the night. He never liked America, too crowded, too noisy. Not so far he sees the Stark tower, they’ve been rebranding after the invasion, changing Stark’s last name for a big, bright A. It’s ridiculous.

There’s a soft knock on the door. He’s been waiting for Bakshi so he lets him in.

“Doctor Whitehall” The man says and his boss turns around, goes to sit on his desk. “Agent Garrett is ready”

“Excellent. What about our other guest?”

“He’s been… restrained”

“Did he need restraining?”

“Yes sir. He took down 4 of our men, quite brutally if I may add” Bakshi says and Daniel smiles at that.

“Test him”

“We have, sir. There’s a substance in his blood, but it’s not genetic. He’s human”

Daniel nods.

“What do you want to do?”

“We’ll need him. Keep him alive but make sure he’s not a problem. I need to talk to Garrett”

“Of course, sir. He’s down at the lab” Bakshi says and then Daniel gets up to follow him.

The stay in silence almost all the way down, until Bakshi finally speaks again. “Sir, have you heard any news from Miss Ophelia?”

“Correct me if I’m wrong, Mr. Bakshi, but isn’t that your job?”

“Yes, sir. But I thought she might try to get in contact with you”

“She’s not that stupid” Daniel says when they reach the lab floor, then gets out of the elevator, going straight to John’s room. “Let her be. We’ll find her when we’re ready”

Bakshi opens the door for him and inside there’s John. He’s lying on a bed, plugged to machines that are keeping him alive.

“Is he awake?”

“We prepared him for you” Bakshi replies and Daniel walks closer to the bed.

“Just kill me already” John mutters, he seems to be in a lot of pain.

“We still have plans for you, Mr. Garrett” Daniel says, “We were waiting for the right moment”

“I’m dead anyway. Coulson… destroyed the serum”

“The only thing you need is a little more time, because… you see, that thing that you needed, it wasn’t made by men. It came from something else, someone else”

“How?”

“Mankind is just starting to open their minds to what’s out there, Mr. Garrett”

“So you’re saying… that it’s alien?” John says and chuckles, which seems to hurt a lot, then he starts coughing.

“He doesn’t have a lot of time, sir” Bakshi says.

“Agent Coulson destroyed what was left of the visitor, the source” Daniel continues but John can’t answer to that, as he struggles to keep breathing “Stay with me a little more. Project deathlok will give you the time you need, but you’ll have to work with me, Mr. Garrett”

“Is there more…?”

“Yes. There’s more like him, but first they need to change, they’ll need to evolve; and soon we’ll know how to do that, because I know where to get us one of these creatures”

“Your girl…” Garrett whispers

“Will you help us?” Daniel asks and John just nods. He’s shutting down. “It’ll hurt, and this time we’re going to make sure that you do exactly as I say”

John nods again.

“I’m glad we have an agreement” Daniel says and then walks away. “Do it” He orders to Bakshi before leaving the room

 

* * *

 

 

**WEEKS LATER**

 

Skye usually doesn’t move much while sleeping, but tonight she tries to pull her arms, she kicks, something restrains her. She’s tied.

“What the… Grant?” She pulls harder and then he opens the door: Whitehall.

“He’ll be fine, darling, as long as he complies” Daniels says with a smile on his face. He’s wearing scrubs “I think there’s something you need to see”

She’s breathing heavily, feels cold and scared and angry. Suddenly there’s another bed right next to her, a sheet, dripping wet with blood, covering a body.

“What is this?” Skye swallows, her heart beats faster.

“I just want to show you how special you are” The man smiles, he takes a scalpel and now his green robes are also covered in blood “I want to reunite you with your mother”

“No, no, please” She cries, but wonders why. She wants to be with her mother. “STOP! PLEASE” Tears burn as they roll down her cheeks. The ground trembles.

“This is what I want to see,” He laughs. She hates it.

Skye closes his eyes and then they grab her. They try to make her see.

“SKYE!” It’s his voice.

Grant’s voice.

She opens her eyes, almost out of breath and clutching the white sheet to her chest. “Whitehall” She says, remembering where she is, the white walls, the breeze and sound of the ocean, Grant… “Grant?”

She’s still naked, but Grant is not there, next to her, so she jumps out of bed and puts on a flimsy, floral dress and goes searching for him.

The beach house is not that big. Grant is not there. He had said something about guns and IDs and…spy stuff.

She sits down. It’s so hot. The short hair helps, but she’s still not used to it. She places her hand on the back of her neck, covered with sweat. She just can get those images off her mind.

Just a few minutes later Grant is home, just what she needs.

“Hi” He smiles but it soon fades away “You ok?” He leaves a bag on the floor as Skye stands up.

She doesn’t answer, just lets the straps of her dress roll down her shoulders, the fabric slides down her body, leaving her naked before his eyes.

“Skye?” He still sounds concerned but he’s clearly having a hard time focusing on asking more questions.

She tries to reassure him with a teasing smile. “Come here”

He obeys and follows her inside the bedroom, his gaze studying every inch of her body as he always does. It feels like he’ll never have enough of her and she knows it. She turns around slowly, for him, wrapping her arms around his neck. “I need you right now”

He doesn’t answer; instead he places his hands on her hips and closes the space between them. He kisses her lovingly. It makes her weak on the knees... the way his lips touch hers. He’s so careful. He waits for her to lead and deepen the kiss.

So she does. Her hands pull the fabric of his white t-shirt. Her tongue dances with his. He places her in the middle of their bed. They both breathe heavily, in a second, the atmosphere has been charged with something new and powerful.

She kisses him again and pulls him down with her. Grant’s hands don’t waste time to find her body. He cups her breasts and Skye lets out a very embarrassing moan. She even feels him smiling against her lips.

He still takes his time, kisses her slowly, moving down. His lips are so hot over her neck. Skye grabs the hair on the back of his neck and pulls. He’s so good with that damn mouth. He’s making her forget.

She needs to make things even, so she reaches down and cups the prominent bulge in his pants. He bites in response and bucks his hips almost involuntarily. She protests when he pulls away. But then he proceeds to take his shirt off and then unbuckles his pants in front of her, pulls them down, keeping just his white boxers and she can feel her mouth go dry at the sight. There’s no way he can hide her effect on him right now.

But he doesn’t move and she’s growing impatient. He’s staring at her. She can see him swallowing, and it’s like there’s a million things going through his head right now, the same struggle that she’s always seen. He’s straddling her hips and his eyes fall shut when she reaches his already sore dick.

“Grant” She says. “Are you going to keep me waiting? I need you” Her hands move up his thighs.

That’s all he needs to jump back to the action. His lips are back on her skin and he takes her arms and pins them over her head. Skye moans when his tongue circles her left nipple. His huge hands are firmly placed on her ribs now while he devotes his time -and mouth- to her boobs. It’s not a part of her body that she’s particularly proud of but Grant seems to disagree as he keeps whispering how perfect she is between kisses and licks. God she feels close and he’s not even really started yet.

He keeps going down and Skye arches her back in anticipation. She fights to keep her eyes open. She wants to see him.

“I want to hear you scream,” He says in a hoarse voice.

She doesn’t protest when he hooks her legs over his shoulders. God, she wants him right there.

He starts by circling his clit with his thumb and Skye moans loudly. Fuck, she’s so wet and he’s never wanted anything more than he wants her right now. He kisses her thigh as he moves two fingers inside her. She finally closes her eyes and just repeats his name over and over.

When his mouth replaces his fingers, she bites her own lip to prevent herself from screaming. She’s never this loud during sex, but Grant just brings it out of her, and they are here, alone, there’s no one but him.

“This feels so good” She moans.

“Come for me” He commands.

“Grant…” She arches her back again, his fingers digging into his hair, pulling him closer.

“This is so fucking hot” He moves her tongue faster, sucks on her and enjoys her pleased sounds, enjoys the way she rubs against his face and pushes his head with her hand. She’s definitely not afraid to show him what she wants and he likes that, too.

It’s sudden and intense and she tenses and yells his name again when she finally comes. Grant keeps her in place and she can only feel his strong hands firmly placed on her hips, then his wet lips over her legs and her stomach, peppering her with soft kisses. She’s still shaking and arching in her post-orgasmic high.

“That was really good” She manages to say a few seconds later, her legs still trembling.

“Just really good?” He asks, crawling over her body until he can kiss her lips again. His mouth is slick with her own fluids. If he doesn’t care neither does she.

He kisses her slowly, but then he stops “You sure you’re ok?”

“Why would I not be?” She says, wrapping her legs around hips. “I stand corrected. It was more than really good, but I hope it’s not over”

He kisses her again and smiles when he feels her fingers pulling down his boxers.

He’s packing, and impossibly hard in her hand.

“I want to be on top” She says as she strokes up and down his shaft.

“You want to ride me?” His breath hitches when she places her thumb on the tip of his cock. “I want to have you like this” He moans “Just once. We got the whole day”

She nods and kisses him softly, smiles when he gets off the bed and gets rid of his boxers.

“Will you tell me? What’s going on…” He positions himself over her again and Skye nods as her nails trace the lines of his sculpted torso. “Have I told you how beautiful you are?” He continues.

She smiles, all the concerns erased from her face at least for this moment “Just a few times” She spreads her legs and then hooks them around his hips. “I’m not gonna break, you know?” She adds before pulling him down with both her legs and her arms around his neck.

He doesn’t want to hurt her, he’s heavy, but he does like the feeling of her chest pressed against hers. Grant takes possession of her lips again as he slides inside her body.

It’s too good. She feels so good as her muscles wrap tightly around him. And then she’s biting his lip, kissing him hot and heavy. “Grant…” She moves her hips and he realizes that he’s been still the last few seconds.

She moans when he slides out and then back in. Her lips find his ear and she whispers his name again. He can never get tired of that sound. “You feel so good” She bites on his earlobe and he thrust back hard, buries his face against her neck and growls.

“You ok?” She asks.

“Fuck. More than ok” He picks up pace. He starts pounding faster into her and hears her soft moans in return.

This is everything. Skye is everything he ever wanted, and having her like that just makes him want even more with her. He knows they can make it. If she’s afraid of something he’ll make sure he can protect her.

She takes his hands and laces fingers with him. She sakes around him. This time he moans loudly tightens his grip on her hands.

“Grant…” She moans.

“Oh God, do that again” He breathes and Skye smiles.

He keeps going, feeling close to his own release, but he needs to see her again. It’s like an addiction. Grant kisses her sweaty skin and pushes harder, she tastes salty and sweet at the same time, and it’s inebriating.

“Skye…” He moans and she tries to protest when he moves to support his weight on his elbows, but that lets him move faster, angle his hips just the right way.

She digs her nails on his back and slides her hands down to his firm ass. He keeps saying her name and she could cry right now. She does when his thumb presses on her clit.

His lips find hers again in a frantic kiss as he moves faster. Skye meets his thrusts in perfect coordination, clenches around him and moans louder against his mouth. Her whole body shakes with her release and that’s enough to rip a loud growl from his throat as he comes abruptly inside her.

Skye knows she was concerned about something but she can’t remember now. She can barely breath. God, he’s still moving, and every time there’s a new wave of pleasure ripping through her body. He pulls out, but the empty feeling doesn’t last long as he replaces his dick with his fingers. He wants to make her come again and he’s not that far from achieving it. She screams and holds onto his shoulders.

He kisses her again and then she comes. It is so fast and strong she might just black out now. She tightens her legs around his hands as she rides it out.

Grant bites his lip as he memorizes her expression. Her lips swollen, eyes shut close, her hair a sweaty mess and her mouth open. She’s arching her back, refusing to let go off the contact of his hand. He’s never seen something like this woman.

And he’s never been more turned on… in fact; he’s never been more in love.

She opens her eyes and licks her lips.

“Was that really good too?”

“Fuck you” She says with a smile on her lips.

“You just did” He returns the smile and then kisses her again. “Got you breakfast”

She’s really into his lips right now, but he registered what he just said and then she starts to remember why she needed him so badly.

“Stay with me” She says, pulling him down again. “Just for a little while” She opens her eyes and Grant is staring at her. She can’t put it into words but she knows what it is, the thing that she sees when he looks at her like that.

He takes the sheets and covers them both with them, then he lays on his side and pulls her against his body. It’s still really hot but Skye doesn’t protest when his arms and legs wrap around her, in fact… she seems to relax in his arms and soon she’s falling asleep. He can feel her soft and steady breath against his chest. He kisses the top of her head before he falls asleep too.

* * *

 

 

 Skye wakes up to the smell of food, and that’s a good thing because she’s starving.

She puts on her dress again, this time with a smile on her face and Grant is waiting for her in the kitchen with their breakfast ready.

“You hungry?” He asks, pouring coffee for the two of them.

“Very” She sits down and immediately starts eating her eggs.

Grant sits next to her, he sips on his coffee first “There’s just something about the coffee here”

“American coffee sucks” She says and Grant chuckles at that.

“I had something to tell you” He says “I met Flavio this morning. We got enough guns to take down a freaking army”

“So… we’re ready”

“Yeah” He reaches for her hand.

“Good” She says.

“My contact said that he’s still moving between Miami and New York. We don’t know why but his next scheduled trip to Miami is in 5 days. That’ll be the perfect moment. He can’t travel with a lot of security”

“Grant…”

“What?”

he takes a moment “You sure we can do it?”

He nods and smiles.

“You won’t have to worry about him after this. It’ll be over, just the two of us” He says and kisses her hand.

“I wish we could just go” She says, and maybe some part of her thinks they should.

“You were right. We just need to do this and then we start over, wherever you want”

She sighs, “Grant, do you ever miss him? John… or even your team?”

“John was a completely different thing. I was… wrong, being away from him let me see that; and the team… they were collateral damage. I’m glad they didn’t have to get hurt but that’s about it”

“I’m sorry”

“Don’t be”

“Grant-“

“Skye! It’s ok, really, let’s just focus on the mission” He smiles before kissing her. “I gotta meet someone for our passports”

 "Okay” She cups his face and kisses him again.

* * *

 

 

When Grant leaves again all those bad thoughts come back. Part of her still wonders if they really have to do it. It’s like she doesn’t care about it that much and the fact that they could die for nothing now, after the last few weeks, makes her wonder if it’s worth it.

The problem is that as long as Whitehall is alive he’ll never leave her. What he did to her parents… she can’t just leave it like that.

And this… illusion of domestic life is too distracting.

She’s actually doing the dishes, like for the first time in her life she’s doing some form of house work and it feels oddly normal, in a way that it makes her feel like she’s settling, that she’s betraying her parents.

Maybe her thoughts are getting to deep for just some dishes.

But then her phone rings and she drops a plate to the floor. No one should be calling that number, unless it’s Grant.

But she knows it’s not Grant.

She picks it up.

“Hello darling”

The voice sends a chill down her spine; she leans against the counter and takes a moment so her voice won’t betray her. “Father! What are… how…”

“You know, when my daughter disappears for almost two months I have to check”

"Wouldn’t be the first time… there’s nothing to be worried about. I just had to lay low for bit, things got a bit nasty with John Garrett, and Shield and what happened in Washington…”

“I understand” Daniel says.

“I’m sorry”

She can almost hear him chuckling on the other end.

He waits a moment before he speaks again “You can drop your act now”

“What? Father…”

“You know that you don’t want to call me that. I’ve heard that Brazil is really nice this time of the year, is it true? What does your boyfriend think?”

“What do you want?”

“That’s better… Skye. I guess you prefer that name”

“Look, if this it about the serum you might as well come and kill me because I don’t have it. Shield took it”

“Oh dear no. I know that shield took it and destroyed everything. I don’t care about that”

“Then what?”

“I don’t want the remains of a dead alien, I’m looking at the bigger picture, something more important. I want you”

“Why? Just to kill me, like you did with my real parents”

He laughs “Always a sharp one, aren’t you?”

“What could you possibly want from me?”

“I want you to see, just before I make you suffer. Either way it’ll happen, the choice that you have to make if it’s going to be just you. At this moment Grant Ward is finding Flavio Ribeiro’s body, he’ll rush home and you have little time to decide. There’s a car waiting for you and if you decide to do the smart thing, I might spare his life”

“You’re a monster”

“Oh my darling, you’ll find out soon that it’s not me the monster. I’m giving you a choice here. I know you. I have a feeling that for the first time in your life you’ll leave behind your self-interested ways and give the man you love a chance, or you could try to go ahead with your plan and fail miserably. It’s up you”

“I’m going to kill you”

Daniel chuckles before hanging up.

And she can’t move. She’s wondering how fast could Grant be here. She finally moves and goes to the window. There’s a car, just a car. Grant could easily take them down and they could just run. 

* * *

 

 

He’s probably never run this fast in his life, he’s never felt so scared.

It’s him, it’s Whitehall and Hydra and if they found them Skye is danger.

There was a huge massage painted in Flavio’s blood for him: Go home. They know where they are.

He practically kicks the door open.

“Skye!!” He yells and looks for signs of fighting. Everything seems to be in place but there’s still no Skye.

He goes to the kitchen and sees one shattered plate on the floor. “God, no. Skye!!” He keeps yelling and looks for her in their bedroom and the bathroom but she’s not there.

He tries calling but she doesn’t answer. All he can feel is rage and fear and it doesn’t matter how hard he kicks and punches the furniture, it doesn’t go away.

It’s just then when he sees the small piece of paper that used to be on the now destroyed coffee table.

_‘I’M SORRY. RUN’_

“A real shame, son”

Grant freezes. He would recognize his voice anywhere.

“All that trouble, for nothing” He continues as Grant slowly stands up and turns around.

It’s him. It’s John. He’s wearing some type of body armor. Grant grips his gun tighter.

“You should thank me” John continues, “He wanted to kill you but I convinced him that you could be of use”

“How are you here?”

“You know me. I’m a tough son of a bitch,” He says with a smile.

“I’m going to save her”

“I’m afraid that’s not going to happen”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! another update, what a surprise hahaha. I hope you like it and leave your comments because this story is going to end soon, maybe a couple of chapters left, maybe just one... who knows?
> 
> Next: Skye meets Whitehall in Puerto Rico and Grant has to finally confront John.


	9. Abandon all hope

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Whitehall takes Skye to Puerto Rico in order to take her down to the underground Kree temple, meanwhile John Garret is making his own plan to strike back at his new boss and has a new mission for Grant, but he has already made his choice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow... sorry, it took me a lot of time but I went on a little vacation and then I had a new idea to extend this fic from 10 to 15 chapters, so there's good news :D. I hope you enjoy what's left. We're really close to the end.

He’s on the floor again, a bleeding lip, probably a cracked rib or two.

“Stop fighting. I don’t want to hurt you, son”

Whatever they gave to John made him stronger, and he’s wearing some type of body armor.

“Listen to me” He insists and kneels next to Grant “We need to get out of here, but if you want me to beat some sense into you first, I’m gonna do it”

“You don’t know what he’s going to do to her”

“I know what he’s going to do to _you_. It’s you and me in this, it’s always been, stop being an idiot”

Grant is already getting up again but then he feels John’s hand on his back, pushing him down again.

“I need to hear the words”

“I need to save her, you have to help me…”

“And I will, after Whitehall is done with her” Grant groans at that and John just keep talking “Just listen to me ok? Your girl is the key to save me, whatever she is-“

“What?”

“I wouldn’t know, don’t ask me. Weird sci-fi stuff, alien stuff” He takes his hand off Grant’s back, finally allowing him to move.

He shakes his head, almost chuckle at all that nonsense “She’s not an alien, John”

“She looks very human to me too, but she’s special, somehow” He helps Grant sit and then looks him in the eye “Something will happen, and what’s in her blood is the key to save me, after she…changes. This…” He gestures at his body armor “it’s just giving me a little extra time. I’m going to die but not if you help me. Isn’t that what we always wanted?”

Grant stops for a moment, but then nods.

“We need her. I know this is hard for you. I want you to know that I forgive you for what you did back in Cuba, and now you have a chance to make it right”

“What does Whitehall want?”

“Probably to use her as a weapon, she’s gonna be just fine. He’s not going to kill her. He needs her. And we need her too”

“And Whitehall is just going to give you what you want?”

“He wants a compliant soldier, he wants to turn you into a brainless puppet, so… I’m the one that’s not gonna give him what he wants. We’re gonna kill him instead”

“What?” Grant asks.

“I can’t do it without you, son. We’ll help your girl, and hopefully she’ll help me in return”

“Skye will help you, we’ll find a way-“

“It didn’t work out so great the last time”

“I promise you!” Grant yells and grabs John’s sleeve “I’m so sorry John, I thought you were dead. I didn’t want that to happen”

“I know. I understand. It’s not to late to fix it. We’ll get her and we’ll get rid of Whitehall, once and for all. That’s what your Skye would want, right?”

“Yeah. I’ll do what I have to do”

“How can I trust you?”

“I made a promise when we started this, and it still stands”

John smiles, then he pats Grant’s cheek. “You know that if it comes to it, I mean, I don’t want that, but it’s possible that you’ll have to make a choice”

“I know” Grant replies.

“Are you ready to make that choice?” John offers him his hand and helps him up.

“I told you. I know what I have to do. I’m not going to screw it again. I already made my choice”

“That’s what I wanted to hear, son”

“I know”

 

* * *

 

 

Two armed men are waiting outside for her while she changes. She was expecting more… torture and less fancy new clothes to be honest. It’s been a couple of days since they arrived and not a lot has happened. She has not been allowed to leave her room or even see Whitehall.

Daniel is playing a new game here and she’ll just have to go with it until she figures out what it is. They’re in Puerto Rico, according to what she heard in the plane, and that doesn’t really help because they never talked about it, but he’s here for a reason. This is not one of his properties, it could be Hydra’s but still, she doesn’t remember about them having any business in the island.

One of the soldiers knocks on the door “Doctor Whitehall is waiting for you”

She sighs. There’s not a lot of time to put the pieces together. He said that she was the monster, and that he was going to make her see something…”

She goes to the door; the soldiers escort her through the big edification, it seems like the place has not been inhabited which has preserved the colonial style architecture, this is definitely not a Hydra hideout, they must be here for a very specific reason.

They open the doors to one of the rooms and Whitehall is waiting for her inside, siting on an old couch, facing a big painting on the wall, smiling.

“Welcome, dear” He says and then gestures at his men to leave them alone.

“Father” She says.

Daniel chuckles “Did you ever see me as that?”

“I did. When I was little, I really wanted to”

He looks at her “Maybe you won’t believe this but I do care about you”

“Oh, that’s why you’ll make me suffer, because you love me so much”

He walks to her. “I was… disappointed, angry. I would never want you to suffer, Ophelia. I want to apologize for that”

“I’m glad to hear it”

He smiles “Alright” He offers her a glass “Do you prefer that I call you Ophelia or Skye?”

She takes the glass “You gave me the name. You gave me your last name too” That she _hates_

“Are you grateful for that?” He pours scotch in both their glasses

“I didn’t have to grow up on the streets, but under your fancy roofs, wearing your fancy clothes” And she would have preferred to live under a fucking bridge with nothing to eat.

“It’s the least that I could do” He smiles “An now… I only want you to see, I want you to realize how great is your potential, what we can do together, you don’t know how special you are”

She returns the smiles as best as she can “I’m sure of that too”

“Yes. You’ll see it” then he looks down, next to the couch, to a case that Skye didn’t notice before.

“Is that the obelisk?” She asks.

“It’s actually called a diviner”

“So this whole thing is about your favorite paperweight?” She asks, taking a sip of her drink “You know it doesn’t do much, unless you’re in need of a night light”

He smirks “It’s not about _it_. It’s about what’s inside, it’s about what you’ll become with its help”

She takes a moment. Maybe he actually figured out a way to make it work “And how do you know all this?”

“I figured you would want to know” He turns around, giving his back to her and walking to the painting, it’s some soldier guy, riding a horse, very epic.

Daniel continues, “In fact, you’ll be happy to know. I mean, I feel like we are building back trust here, rekindling our relationship, which is important to me now that I hope you can help our cause. That’s why I have a very special surprise for you”

This is the moment when she starts to have a really bad feeling about this whole thing. She wonders if Grant made it out, if he’s ok, if she’s going to die here and Whitehall will go and has his way again.

“Bring him!” He yells.

She hears footsteps and there’s only one thought crossing her mind… Grant.

She turns towards the door only to see a group of soldiers bringing a man in, but she doesn’t recognize him. Still, it’s like some part of her is screaming, some part of her just… _knows._

He’s all beaten up but his eyes widen when he sees her.

When she turns to Whitehall he’s cleaning his glasses, with that smug smirk “You asked how I know all these things about the diviner…” He puts his glasses back on.

The soldiers leave the man and immediately aim their guns at him.

“Meet doctor Johnson, or Cal, for his friends. Am I right, Cal?”

Cal is slowly walking towards her with a perplexed look on his face, tears almost rolling down his cheeks.

“He shared with us everything that there was to know about… you” Daniel says “You see, he’s also your real father”

In that moment Cal grabs one of the soldiers by his vest and easily throws him against a wall, but before he can do anything else Daniel fishes a controller out of his pocket, pressing a button that sends Cal to the floor, screaming and growling in pain.

“If she wasn’t here, I would tear you to pieces!” He spits, gritting his teeth and fighting to get up again.

“We had to take some measures. He’s a handful” Whitehall says.

“What-… stop!” Skye pleads, still looking incredulously at the man. Of course, Daniel could be lying about this.

He stops but Cal is still squirming on the floor.

“This is not true”

“It is, and I’m offering you chance to have everything you ever wanted”

“He’s…”

“I can give you a minute with him, if we can… come to an agreement”

Cal is finally moving, trying to get up, but he gets kicked by one of the soldiers.

“We do!” Skye says. “We can, I’ll- just give me a minute with him”

Daniel smiles at that and then nods at his men. “I’ll be waiting, darling” He says on his way out.

When they leave, she doesn’t even move. She can’t.

Long forgotten are all her plans, this is everything she thought she would never have, right in front of her and it’s still hard to believe. Except that she feels it. He’s not lying.

Cal manages to sit on the floor.

“I’m sorry” He clears his throat “This is hardly what I imagined, all those years dreaming about this… I promised myself I wouldn’t get emotional but it’s just-”

She’s still in shock. She falls, sitting on the couch.

“I’m sorry I didn’t- Uhm… “ He stands up again, ignoring his pain “I’m Cal, I’m your father… I- please say something”

“How is this possible?” She whispers.

“I know it’s… a little hard to believe, and this is not an ideal situation. I- I had planned the whole thing, bringing you flowers, and- and those little almond cookies-“

“Cal” She interrupts him.

He wipes his hands against his pants “I’m sorry. I know I’m a terrible disappointment. I should have found you sooner, but I swear I tried, I did… everything. I don’t know what you know about me but-“

“I know nothing about you. I don’t even know if this is true”

“It is” He rushes to her side but then stops in his tracks. He looks nervous “Is it ok…” He asks before siting on the couch next to her. Skye nods “I know you can feel it. You… you were taken from my and my world fell apart” He swallows “that was the worst day of my life, and it only went downhill from there. I’m… I’m not a good guy, I’ve done things… after I lost my little girl, you-” He looks down and then back up, meeting her eyes “I didn’t loose you. I wasn’t careless, you were stolen from me!!”

He’s breathing heavily and yelling and yes, it’s a bit intimidating.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. Let’s not loose our heads” He lifts his hands “I don’t know what to say. You have to believe it”

“Then tell me”

“Yeah” he nods “whatever you want, what do you want to know”

“I want to know everything”

 

* * *

 

Daniel is waiting for Bakshi in one of the other rooms. The man knows a few times before he’s called in.

“Hello, Mr. Bakshi. I was hoping to her some good news”

“Yes sir, Agent Garrett is on his way. They should be here soon”

“Do you have everything ready?” He asks and Bakshi nods “Excellent. I hope that Agent Ward is not too much to handle”

“Agent Garrett said that it shouldn’t be a problem. Grant Ward will be quite a remarkable asset”

Whitehall smiles “Keep me updated on that”

“Yes, Doctor Whitehall” He looks at him “We’ll be ready to send Miss Ophelia down soon. The men have their suits ready, like you ordered”

“Perfect”

“Are you sure she’s not going to need a suit too?”

“Are you asking if I am wrong with this?”

Bakshi shakes his head “No. Never. We just… don’t know exactly what’s waiting down there”

“You just have to believe, and wait. Patience, Mr. Bakshi. Patience is a really important virtue to have in our mission. She’s one of them, and she’s ready to help us now”

“And her… uhm, Mr. Johnson?”

“Is he still with her?”

Bakshi shakes his head, and Daniel continues, “He could be a problem, but we need him alive, at least until Ophelia changes. We need her to cooperate”

“Of course, sir” He takes a moment and then asks “We have prepared the equipment to work on Agent Ward, if I may suggest maybe it’s the time to make Miss Ophelia comply to our cause”

Whitehall doesn’t reply to that.

“Sir?”

“You can leave now, that’s all”

“Doctor Whitehall-“

“You just do your job with Agent Ward. Leave Ophelia to me”

“As you say” Bakshi says before leaving the room.

 

* * *

 

 

“Why here?” Grant asks, he’s piloting the Quinjet and approaching their destination.

“There’s some sort of sacred, alien temple. It has to be here”

“So, Skye’s here” He says

“Yeah. But focus. We need to have an eye on Whitehall, wait for him to do whatever he wants to do”

“We’ll do just fine. You got enough weapons to take down a small army,” He says, minding the couple of gun crates that John had inside the plane when he picked him up in Brazil.

“And that’s exactly what’s going to be waiting for us inside”

“I’ve seen worse” Grant smirks, already preparing the plane for landing.

“Look, Whitehall put something inside me. I can’t get too close, but I can take care of the soldiers” He smiles “It almost feels like the old times, just you and me”

Grant is landing the plane on a cleared land close to the beach. “Do we have a plan?”

“Sure, first… we wait. Whitehall is not going to leave Skye’s side. He has to take her down to the temple. We might need another way in. Our best shot is grabbing her before they get out. I don’t think he’s taking a lot of men with them”

“Probably just Bakshi” Grant says “Hang on”

The quinjet lands and then Grant gets out of the pilot’s seat

“Grab everything you need”

“So… another entrance, underground temple” Grant says, opening one of the crates, picking his weapon.

John frowns “You might want to pick and automatic”

“I need something bigger” He replies, taking out a M32 grenade launcher.

He aims it at John. No hesitation. He knows what he has to do.

“What are you doing?” He’s still smiling. This has to be some kind of bad joke.

“I told you that I had made my choice, as usual, you were just not paying attention”

John chuckles “You are not going to pull that trigger, kid”

“Whatever you, or Whitehall want to do with Skye… it’s not gonna happen. I’m not gonna let it happen”

That’s when John’s smiles starts fading “Stop it! Just stop it! Skye this, Skye that… She doesn’t give a shit! I do! I’m the one that picked you up when you were nothing! You ungrateful son of a bitch!”

“I would have fallen for that just a few weeks ago, would have felt bad… you know, guilty, would have believed all the things that you always have to say about me, John, but here’s the thing… I just never knew how it felt, to actually have someone that cares. That’s why I thought you did, that’s why I believed you all those years, because I didn’t know how it felt like to be loved”

John starts laughing at that, “That has to be the most pathetic load of bullshit that I’ve heard in my l-“

The projectile sends him flying out of the open Quinjet door and onto the ground. Grant is still shaking a little, it feels right, feels like something he should have done a long time ago, but it doesn’t make it any easier. He drops the grenade launcher on the floor and walks out of the plane.

John is moving, spiting blood on the ground and trying to turn on his back. He can’t even move.

“You’re going to regret this, I’m going to-“

Grant grabs him and throws him back inside the jet. The man growls with the impact. Even though the armor protected him he’s still badly burned and can’t stand on his own.

“It’s over” Grant says, “I’m done with you. I’m going to go in there and do what I have to do, and you can’t do a damn thing to stop me. Not anymore”

“You’re still the same…” John coughs, looking up at Grant, he feels the blood in his mouth, the cracked bones “…stupid, weak, naïve boy that I found”

“Shut up, John” He says, before kicking him hard on the head, finally rendering him unconscious.

He takes a deep breath. He has a mission.

A rifle and a pistol should be enough. He’s not planning to get in there, guns blazing, killing everybody. He needs to get there unnoticed, save Skye before Whitehall takes her down to that temple.

 

* * *

 

 

Maybe this was always going to happen, maybe there’s just no way to beat men like Daniel Whitehall, she thinks as the soldiers drag her through more corridors and down the lower levels of the mansion.

She’s never been this helpless. He knew that bringing her father here he would make sure that she wasn’t going to figure out a way out of this, she doesn’t even want to try to be honest. As long as they have him she’ll have to do as Daniel says. She’s not going to loose him again.

But she has never been without a plan.

Only that it seems that fate has not given up on her yet. She hears it, two shots, and two dead bodies dropping behind her. The other two soldiers, to each of her sides turn around, but only to face the same death.

4 bullets, 4 dead mean around her, and Grant Ward walking like a fucking boss, smirking at her.

Of course she slaps him.

“What are you doing here!” She asks.

“Riding in my white horse, saving a very ungrateful princess”

She rolls her eyes “This is not- this was not supposed to happen, you were safe! I don’t need you to come here and die for me”

“Who’s dying? I mean.. Besides those guys?” He points at them with his rifle

“He’s here! And know he can have you too”

“So you really care”

“Of course! I- I… don’t want you to die… yet”

“Because…” He teases

“Because, I don’t find your presence that unpleasant?”

“I’ll take if for now” He says and she punches him in the chest.

“You shouldn’t be here, and I don’t need saving, I’m your damsel in distress you know that?”

“I know”

She looks down and after a moment, she grabs his t-shirt and pulls him closer, wrapping her arms tightly around him “Why did it take you so long?”

He smiles and kisses the top of her head “I’m sorry. I had to deal with something, but we can go now. We’ll figure out a way to kill him, together, and we’ll come back for him when we’re ready”

Her face is pressed against his chest, and yes, she’s thinking about other feelings that are a bit more than just not finding his presence unpleasant. She nods.

Wait.

She pushes him. “No” She says and grant frowns “We can’t, my… ok, this is a bit hard to explain but my father is alive, the real one. Whitehall has him, I can’t leave without him”

“Oh” Grant says, looks at the dead bodies behind her “We’re probably a bit outmanned”

“I know I can’t ask you this”

“To meet your father? Yeah, kind of pushy if you ask me. Are we even official? You think he’ll approve?”

She smiles, and grabs him again, but this time she kisses him. God she missed him, and it’s been just a couple of days. Being with Grant just makes her feel safer, stronger. He places his hands on her hips like he knows that she needs him, his lips are a promise that they won’t die here, that he’s not going to leave her.

She’s the first to break the kiss; they’re kind of standing in plain sight with a lot of bodies around them.

“We need to go” He says, licking his lips.

“We need to go” She repeats.

Grant grabs her hand and they quickly leave the scene. The gunshots will certainly attract soldiers soon and they don’t have time to hide the bodies. He gives Skye his handgun.

“Do you know how to shoot a gun?”

“I can manage” She takes the gun and Grant aims his rifle.

“Stay behind me and do what I do, ok?” He says and she nods. “Do you know where they put him?”

“I don’t know, far?… he’s pretty loud, and not that easy to handle, maybe we can hear him when we get closer”

Grant raises his eyebrows at that “Ok. That could help, I suppose”

 

* * *

 

“We found John Garret’s quinjet” Bakshi says, looking down “there was no sign of Grant Ward”

Daniel sighs, “Haven’t I told you, Mr. Bakshi? To never underestimate your enemies?” He stands from his chair “I guess that explains everything else”

“We already have men searching for them, blocking the exits. We have the jet-“

“You don’t have to put men on the exits, there’s only one place that she’s going to go”

 

* * *

 

“He’ll know that we’re here” Grant says, peeking around the corner. They can hear Cal shouting curses inside a room that is guarded by a few more soldiers.

“Which is why we need to do this fast”

“Shouldn’t be a problem. Wait here”

He takes a deep breath and then jumps into action. Watching him work is actually a quite thrilling. He moves incredibly fast, his aim is perfect, and he has already shot two men before the other three can even get in position. He hits one of them with the butt of his gun, kicks the other and shoots the third one. They really don’t stand a chance against Grant’s skills, unless, of course, they can catch him off guard, like the guy that just came out of the room, ready to shoot him.

She shoots first, with deadly precision.

Grant just turns and sees the guy with a bullet hole in the middle of his forehead, but before he can say anything else, another one comes out, punching Grant in the face and the fight resumes.

“Skye!” He yells when she walks past them and inside the room.

It looks like a kitchen, and Cal is tied to a chair. His face lights up when he sees her, all signs of anger gone in an instant.

“You’re here”

“Yeah” She has not moved.

Outside the fight seems to have stopped. Grant joins her. He’s just catching his breath when he sees the guy.

“Sir, it’s truly an honor to meet you” He smiles.

And actual nervous smile, which is adorable. She’s so glad he’s here.

Cal frowns “Who’s this?”

“I’m Grant Ward, sir”

“He’s my… Grant… my friend” She says, practically stumbling over her words.

“I see” Call says, looking at them.

Grant clears his throat “We need to get you out of here, now” then he moves and quickly frees Cal from his restrains.

“Let’s go” Skye says.

“Wait. You can’t go” Cal says.

“What?” Skye and Grant say at the same time.

“Not before you go down, to the temple” Her father tries to explain.

“What are you talking about? That’s what Whitehall wants” Skye says.

“No!... yes, but, it’s not because he wants it, it’s because it’s your destiny. It has to happen”

“She doesn’t want to do it, and she won’t do it” Grant adds.

“You don’t know how important this is, _friend_. It’s not going to hurt her, it’s just going to show her who she really is”

“I say she’s pretty perfect the way she is now” Grant retorts.

Cal smiles at that, looks at Skye “I couldn’t agree more, but this… it’s her gift, it’s what she was born to become”

“You should listen to the man”

They hear Daniel’s voice and turn around to find him at the door, with more soldiers.

Grant is aiming at them but there’s too many.

Whitehall smiles. “Come on, we can do this the easy way, there’s no need for this. You heard your father” He talks to Skye “this is not going to harm you, on the other hand, maybe it’s going to show you how great you are”

“You’re going to kill them” She says.

“I’m feeling generous, I’ll probably let you choose who stays alive” He smirks at them “but no one is going to die yet, the only thing you have to do is come with me”

She looks at Grant, then at her father. The man nods.

“Drop your weapon, Agent Ward” Daniel orders.

“I can take at least half of you before you have shot your first bullet” Grant tells the soldiers “and you’ll be the first” he addresses Whitehall.

“And you will follow, just for her to see, then her dad…”

“Grant, please” Skye says, reaching for his arm.

“Sooner or later, we’ll find a way to kill you, you know that?” Grant says, tossing his rifle to the floor, Skye does the same with her gun.

“I can’t believe you let her drag you into this again. I could make her choose now” Daniel says as his men pick up the guns and grab Grant, sitting him next to Cal. “Who lives? Her father, hat she just got back, or her poor, lovesick puppy? I don’t like your odds”

“They both live or we’re not doing this” Skye says.

“That depends on you, my darling daughter,” He says, moving a strand of hair out of her face.

“Don’t call her that!” Call yells but when he moves Daniel takes out his controller again, sending him to the floor, screaming in pain. Grant notices the small device attached to Cal’s neck.

“Stop! Stop! You don’t need to do this, lets just go to the stupid temple, now!” Skye yells.

Whitehall smiles.

“Ok. I was happy to be a part of this reunion but it’s time for me and _my_ daughter to go”

One of the soldiers grabs Skye’s arms and start pulling her away; half of the men stay there while the other half leave with Daniel.

“She’s going to kill you!” Grant yells “And I’m going to be there to see it!”

“Shut up” One of the soldiers say. The others pick up Cal and tie him again to his chair.

“Don’t worry. We just have to get out of here. Skye will figure out a way to deal with Whitehall”

“That... is not… her name” Cal says.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it! tell me what you think! As I said I decided to write a little more for this one, mainly because I didn't want to end it without a literal bang... you'll see hahaha.
> 
> Next: Whitehall takes Skye to the temple and Grant has a very awkward moment with his... new father in law? also he has to enlist the help of some enemies, and someone gets their revenge :o


	10. The law of retaliation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Skye goes through terrigenesis and Daniel wishes he had never gone down there with her. After Puerto Rico Skye and Grant are taken by Shield and now they'll have to come up with a new plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: There are some violent and bloody descriptions here, if you're affected by that kind of thing.

They are walking downstairs, a group of soldiers ahead, a few more behind them. “It’s such a disappointment, that after everything I’ve done for you, you want to ignore your destiny”

“I don’t know what you think that is going to happen down there, you might as well kill me, because I’m _never_ going to help you,”

He looks pissed, clenches his jaw and takes a deep breath. She has seen that expression before, every time he’s about to threaten her, to make her see what he can do.

And then it comes to her….“I have a question for you, if this was your grand plan all along, if you needed me, why didn’t you turn me into one of your brainwashed soldiers? You could have done that a long time ago and spare yourself from all this trouble”

A pause.

He takes his time before he answers, “You’re such an ungrateful brat. I told you I cared about you. Didn’t I give you everything? I didn’t want to do that to _you_! You’re not like any of them”

She chuckles at that “That’s bull- wait… you can’t…” She murmurs

“What?”

“Maybe you tried, and you couldn’t, maybe it didn’t work…” She continues, then smiles “It didn’t work on me, did it?”

She’s taking a bet here but judging by Whitehall’s expression she might be onto something.

“Didn’t you hear what I just told you?”

“You didn’t give me shit. You took me away from my parents! You took everything from me!” she raises her voice “And you can’t control me!” She smiles “Maybe you’ll kill me but you’ll never control me and you’ll never have what you want. You loose”

“I have your boyfriend and your father, I say I don’t need anything else to win, in fact, it might be better this way, because I can make sure that you’ll do what I want and you’ll be aware of it every single second”

She tries to come at him, even with her hands tied she manages to head-butt him hard before the soldiers grab her again.

 

* * *

 

 

“You are more than just her _friend_ , aren’t you?” Cal asks.

That catches Grant off guard “I was planning to do this under better circumstances to be honest”

“Things don’t always go as planed, do they? I had many plans for this day. Never considered a boy, but I can manage something I guess, a small dinner, do you know her favorite food?”

“Shut up!” Yells one of the soldiers.

“Hey! Do you mind?” Grant says at the soldier but then speaks to Cal again. “She likes desserts, any kind of desserts, has a serious sweet tooth”

Cal smiles at that “Just like her mother”

“I said. Shut up!” The soldier approaches Grant and punches him in the stomach.

“Come on!” Grant says, “Just for that you are going to die first” He grits his teeth in pain.

“We are trying to have a conversation!” Cal adds.

“We should just shoot one,” Another soldier says.

“Have you ever tried to make a good impression in front of the father of the girl you like?” Grant asks the soldiers “Sorry, have you ever met any girls? Or is all hail hydra all the time?”

And he gets punched again, this time in the face.

“I’m sorry sir, I really don’t want our first meeting to end up with murder” Grant says.

“I’m fine with murder” Cal replies.

“Oh… you have to know that I wouldn’t murder just for any girl”

“I’m really glad to hear that”

“Ok that’s it” The soldier moves to hit Grant with the butt of his gun but then he manages to throw his weight to the front, chair and everything, and pushes the soldier against the wall, landing over him. The others rush to help and put Grant back in his place, but just before they can punish him for it, they hear more gunshots.

“What was that?” One of them asks.

“Who the hell is here!” Another soldier yells at Grant, punching him again.

“I’m just trying to have a conversation, I didn’t bring anyone here” He answers.

The one that seems to be the leader speaks to another soldier outside “Take 3 men, go check that”

They are all looking at the door, which lets Grant cut himself free with a knife that he grabbed from the soldier when he pushed him. He moves fast, by the time they realize he’s free, he’s grabbed the closest soldier by the neck, and when the others shoot, Grant uses him as a human shield until he’s close enough to attack.

Cal sees him move, grabbing the dead’s man gun to quickly kill the rest. He’s smart, well trained; it was 6 Hydra agents that he managed to defeat in just a couple of minutes.

Grant hides next to the door, when the last one of them gets in Grant pushes a knife in his neck, kicks him as the man drowns in his own blood on the floor.

He’s breathing heavily when he comes back to untie Cal.

“Who are you?” The man asks.

“At this point… no one really. I’m kind of in between jobs, I know it’s not a good thing for a first impression”

Cal frowns “It certainly isn’t” he says, looking at all the dead soldiers as Grant unties him. “I didn’t really pictured myself thinking about… this, it was more like, watching movies and eating ice-cream” He sighs “How did you get so good at killing people?” Cal suddenly asks.

“Uhm… Shield, Hydra. Things that don’t really matter anymore”

Cal stands up, takes a step closer to Grant “The things that took my daughter away from me the first time”

“I would never do something like that”

He’s way too close.

“Good. She loves you?”

“I… hope so?”

Cal finally backs away a little. “She hasn’t told you?”

“She ha-“

“And do you love her?”

Grant swallows, he has not said it out loud before, but it doesn’t make it any less true “I do love her, which has not been easy” He jokes, but Cal only frowns at him.

“Why wouldn’t it be easy? She’s lovely. She’s beautiful and smart an brave-“

“Yes, you’re right”

“Any man would be lucky to love someone like that”

Grant nods, but Cal is not moving, just staring at him and invading his personal space.

But then he smiles.

He smacks Grant’s arm “We’re good”

“We’re good?”

“Cool as a cucumber” Cal jokes and then picks up a gun. “Come on, you just killed a group of soldiers and feel intimidated by an old man?”

Grant shakes his head and starts following Cal.

But then the man stops again, casually points at Grant’s chest with his gun as he speaks “But seriously though, if you ever hurt her I’m going to have to kill you” he says with a big smile “I’m still a dad, and that’s what dads do” then he starts walking again “isn’t it a beautiful word? A dad. This is a great day, you are a nice kid, Grant Ward”

 

* * *

 

 

“Doctor Whitehall, Shield is here. I know that this is important but this is a blood bath”

“And? They have their orders”

“Maybe we should-” Bakshi insists. They have retreated to one of the rooms in the lowers floors, where they placed a drill to make a passage down to the temple.

“We should what? Leave? When we’re finally here? I’m finding your lack of commitment and doubts a little unsettling”

Skye chuckles at that.

“Sir, with all due respect, it’s just not safe to go down there”

“No one Is asking you to” Whitehall responds. “Stand guard with our brave men, here”

“But- but… if shield gets here…”

“Once they are here, we’ll have her!” Whitehall says, grabbing Skye’s arm “let’s go”

He takes a couple of soldiers and they help them go down the hole in the floor, leading to the temple.

Skye chuckles again once they are down, the two soldiers are carrying torches ahead them.

“Don’t touch anything and we’ll be just fine. You’ll be witnesses of the greatest thing you’ll see in your lives”

“You’re going to wish you didn’t” Skye mutters.

  

* * *

 

 

They’ve been walking in silence, it’s a bit awkward.

“Uhm…” Grant walks faster to keep up with Cal’s pace “What I said earlier was true, sir. I love her, I would never-“

“Yeah, you already said that”

Grant smiles and repeats, “I love her”

Cal stops, looks at Grant.

“And I promise you that I’ll save her, no matter what. You need to get out, and I’ll bring her back, sir. I promise I-“

Cal frowns “Wait, wait wait… what are you talking about?”

“Whitehall?”

“Yeah he’s a total douche nozzle, I’m going to enjoy the moment I can rip his heart out his chest”

“Oh… right, yeah. But we need to get Skye first”

That earns him a really ugly look from Cal “You know, she needs to be down there. And her name is Daisy”

“Her- “ Grant blinks “Down there? Down where?”

“It is her gift, she has to… receive it. It’s not going to harm her”

Grant frowns “But Whitehall will”

Cal pauses and Grant speaks again.

“I don’t even know what’s happening right now, but I won’t let him lay a finger on her”

“Too bad you’re gonna be too dead to do that, son”

They both hear the voice and turn around to find John standing and aiming a gun, Cal barely has time to move and push Grant out of the way before he fires several times.

“Who the fuck is this?” John asks, he’ll all burned and banged up and seems to have a bit of trouble moving.

Cal falls in Grant’s arms, but quickly recovers his balance.

“Someone you just pissed off”

Grant is out of words; the guy was shot at least three times but is still standing.

John shoots again.

And Cal just runs and tackles him to the ground.

“Holy shit” Grant has not even moved.

“Go get her!” Cal yells as he punches John. “You promised! Bring her back to me”

Grant raises his gun, but then Cal grabs John and pulls him up, driving him against a wall in an unbelievable display of strength.

“GO!” Cal yells and Grant nods.

 

* * *

 

 

They find the big chamber after a couple of minutes, the construction is very well preserved, although there’s nothing more than some carvings and symbols on the floor and a small column in the middle of the main room-place

“We’re here” Whitehall smiles.

Skye smiles too “Everything you’ve always wanted”

One of the soldiers opens the case that contains the diviner.

“You’re right, my dear. It’s time to see just how special you are”

“What if you don’t like what you see?”

Daniel smirks at that, and then looks at the obelisk “Pick it up”

She rolls her eyes, picks up the object, making it glow in her hand. She looks at the soldiers

“Don’t even think about it” Whitehall says and Skye raises an eyebrow at him, lowering the glowing obelisk. “Good girl”

“You know I’ve always been good” She says, determined. Whatever happens inside there, Whitehall is not walking out alive.

She walks inside the chamber first.

“So, how des this work? Any magic words?”

Whitehall takes a pistol from one of his soldiers and follows her inside, he looks a bit confused, there’s nothing inside the room except… “Place the obelisk in there”

So she does, and once she’s close enough, the thing starts moving on its own, it floats and moves toward the pillar.

Then she hears it, her name. It’s Grant, he’s yelling, somewhere, and her first instinct is to move, but the floor rumbles under her feet, pieces of gravel fall from the ceiling as the walls start shifting, closing the room.

“What’s going on?”

“It’s happening” Whitehall smiles as he looks around the room.

“Skye!!!” Grant yells. He’s getting closer, but the room is almost sealed.

She could go for it, run now.

But she doesn’t, she focuses back on Daniel, trying to ignore Grant’s voice, trying to ignore the sound of gunfire outside the chamber when it’s completely sealed.

Then the obelisk cracks open.

 

* * *

 

 

“No!! NO! SKYE!!! FUCK!!!” Grant yells, punching the walls, walking around the structure to see if there’s a way to get inside but he just goes back to the place where he started, next two the bodies of the two remaining Hydra soldiers he just killed. “CAN YOU HEAR ME? SKYE!!!” HE places his hands on the wall, defeated.

Only now he notices that he was shot in the arm, he doesn’t even know if it was John or Whitehall men just now. He doesn’t care.

She’s could die inside there. He needs to go back, maybe get the drill that Whitehall used. He’s going to dig a hole in those walls with his own nails if he has to.

 

 

* * *

 

“Do you know what your mother gift was?” Whitehall asks, staring at the blue crystals “I wouldn’t be here without her. It’s meant to be”

Then there’s the mist. A big explosion that releases some kind of gas, she can see fear in Daniel’s face… that’s new.

“What-“ He starts, checks himself, then looks at her.

And she’s starting to feel it, it’s so cold, as if she was dipping her feet on a bucket with ice.

She looks down.

“No…” Daniel says, still surprised “this is not what’s supposed to happen…” He remembers all the people that were not… like her, they all turned into stone just by touching the diviner, but she was supposed to be different.

“Oh God” She says, breathing heavily. It’s not cold anymore, it’s… as if her body was paralyzed, it’s consuming her, it start burning, from her inside, it’s covering her whole body and it hurts more than anything she’s felt before.

And she can’t breathe. She’s going to die. He… won. She looks at him as the black substance envelopes her whole and she can’t even yell, she can’t hear her voice anymore.

 

* * *

 

 

He goes back. He’ll drag that drill down. He needs to find Cal. He-

Fuck.

What the hell is Phil Coulson doing here?

“Hands where I can see them” He says, aiming his gun at Grant.

He so doesn’t have time for this bullshit, but he doesn’t even try to use his gun, nor he drops it. He keeps walking.

“Grant Ward, I’m not going to say it again”

Ward stops.

“I’m going back up, I need to drill a hole in wall and I’m going to drill that fucking hole”

“What?”

“You want to arrest me, shoot me, whatever, I don’t care, but you’ll have to wait, because if you stand in my way now, I’m going to have to kill you, and to be honest… I never wanted to kill you, so don’t make me do it”

“Is this about the girl?”

“Whitehall has Skye. I need to save her”

Coulson slowly starts to lower his gun.

“I need to save her” Grant insists.

“We know who she is”

“You don’t know shit” Grant says and then there’s something like a explosion, a rumble and the whole place starts to shake. It’s coming from the room.

He starts running back.

“Ward!” Coulson yells and follows him.

It’s getting louder and stronger and the place is crumbling, big chunks of solid rock fall above his head and he struggles to avoid it, they hit him a couple of times.

He sees the walls cracking.

“Stop right there!” Coulson yells again.

“Skye!!” Grant is back at the main chamber. He knows that Coulson is just behind him. “You gotta help me save her”

“She’s in there?”

Grant nods “With Whitehall” He looks back “Coulson, please… “

“I might know a way”

 

* * *

 

 

This is nothing like what she imagined. It’s… power running through her veins, as if every single cell in her body was shifting, exploding.

She breaks free and she can’t quite understand how. The ground is shaking around them; Daniel is looking at her, ecstatic, but soon that expression turns into something different. He’s a smart man.

She’s doing this, it’s not the chamber, it’s _her._ She clenches her fists and it gets louder, stronger. The room is starting to collapse.

“You’re magnificent” Whitehall says.

“I’m going to kill you” Skye whispers, staring at him.

“You will kill us both”

“I don’t care, dad”

“Ophelia…”

“That’s not my name!” She takes a step.

“Stop!” And Daniel takes a step back.

“Tell me how special my mom was!” She yells at him “Tell me how you’re here thanks to her!”

He shoots her.

And it’s just a reflex, she raises her hands and the bullets don’t hit her. Whitehall shoots again and again until he’s out of bullets.

“I waited my whole life to do this”

She doesn’t know how it works, but she focuses, no matter how bad it hurts. She doesn’t care if it kills her.

He yells in pain, he yells like all the people he used to hurt and experiment on, like all the people he made her see as he butchered them or brainwashed them.

He yells even louder.

His legs break first, his whole body cracks, blood dripping out of his ears and his mouth.

She aims one hand at him as her power breaks him apart, every single bone, every single nerve and organ in his body getting crushed. And he’s dead. He stops yelling, he stops struggling.

He’s just a pile of deformed limbs on the floor.

It’s done. The room is falling apart over her head, but she’s finally killed him.

Then there’s a small explosion on the wall, and that’s the last thing she hears before hitting the floor.

 

* * *

 

 

When she wakes up everything hurts, just… everything. Every cell, every bone, every single hair on her head. It sucks, it’s like the worst hangover ever… after fighting a pack of wolves.

And it’s so… white.

Damn it. Is she dead?

She’s hearing voices though.

“Subject 084001 is awake”

It’s a woman’s voice on a speaker “So many numbers” Skye says in a raspy voice “Did I die?”

“You’re not dead” The woman answers.

“Who are you?”

“Agent Morse” The voice says, “You’re under Shield’s custody”

“That’s great”

“We’re going to put you to sleep now”

“No wait… Grant… Where’s…”

And everything fades again.

 

* * *

 

 

He doesn’t mind the dark; he doesn’t mind the really uncomfortable bed, the isolation, the… lack of privacy, or the shitty food.

What has him on edge is that it’s been like 4… maybe 5 days and he has not seen Skye. He agreed to this. He cooperated. He let them put him in a vault because they were going to take care of her.

But now he can’t help but wonder if they just made her a lab rat. Whatever happened in that temple it had something to do with her.

He saw Whitehall’s body, and the shattered pieces of something like a carcass. The Shield he knew wouldn’t hesitate to put her through tests and lock her up forever; but he wanted to think that this was Coulson and his team and they wouldn’t do that, would they?

It’s easy for him to hear the door with the silence in the room. He stands up and then sees Coulson walking downstairs.

“It’s been days!” He blurts out.

“Calm down” The new director, says. He’s carrying a tablet in his hand “She just woke up”

Grant sighs, “What are you going to do?”

“We don’t know yet. We don’t know what we’re dealing with”

“I don’t know much. It has to do with her mom…”

“Do you know who built that temple?” Coulson asks but it sounds more like a statement than question. Grant looks down “This is bigger than we thought”

“I’ve felt small tremors” Grant says.

“We don’t know if we can contain it. Fitzsimmons are doing their best”

“Then let us go”

Coulson’s lips curve up in a small smile “Sure, let the world handle that”

“I don’t know what you want me to say”

“How about we start with a good story about John Garret?”

“I’ll cooperate, okay? I’ll do as you say, I’ll give you intel, I’ll explain everything. I just need to see her”

“We’ll see”

Grant walks closer to the invisible barrier that separates them, which makes it glow.

Coulson speaks again “She’s fine. We’ll help her”

Grant nods, looking relieved. “We never wanted to hurt anyone”

“All the bodies in Puerto Rico tell another story”

“Hydra bodies, a big Hydra head too. You could say that we did you a big favor”

 Coulson’s smirk grows at that. “Yeah, you could”

“Just tell me what you want”

 

* * *

 

She can move now, but it still hurts.

“What the-“ She says when she raises her arms and sees that she’s wearing gloves that cover her hands and forearms up to her elbows.

The door beeps and slides open and a very tall, blonde woman comes in.

"Hi, I’m Agent Morse. We spoke a couple of days ago”

“You’re so tall” Skye blinks repeatedly, trying to sit upright on her bed. “Why is it so white in here?”

“It’s the material that we used to build this room. This is helping us keep your… abilities under control. They’re a bit unstable, especially when you sleep”

“My abilities?”

“Oh, yeah… what happened in Puerto Rico, we believe it had something to do with a transformation that you experimented in that ritual chamber”

She remembers it, and it doesn’t make any sense but yet, she believes it.

“I don’t know what I am”

“We’re making tests. We’ll explain everything we can figure out, but right now, our priority is to…help-“

“Contain”

“You need to remain calm. We won’t harm you, we’re here to help every step of the way”

Skye smile “Because that’s what Shield does best, right?”

“Yes”

“Where’s Grant? Did you find anyone else?”

“I’m not authorized to give you that information yet

“Shocking”

The agent reads the tablet in her hand “We need you to start eating solid food, okay? I’ll help you”

“Stop saying that. Help, help help. I know that you think that I’m the daughter of Daniel Whitehall, big Hydra douche, the enemy… maybe you’re thinking… we got this girl now, she can do crazy stuff, we’ll keep her under control, we’ll use her as we please…”

As she speaks, the room starts shaking lightly.

“… we’ll use her a weapon”

“That’s not-“

“That’s exactly what we’ll do” Coulson cuts in as he steps inside the room. “If you choose to do it, I mean when you put it like that It does sound pretty evil”

Skye chuckles “Do I have another option?”

“It’s the best option, so you don’t hurt anybody, so you can actually do some good” He says “the two of you”

“Grant’s in this? Where’s he?”

“Locked up” Coulson answers “He agreed to do it” He adds when Skye frowns at him. “try to be in our position”

“I couldn’t care less about shield, neither does Grant”

“You could say the same about Hydra, Am I right? I say that’s a good place to start”

“You want a freak in your team? Is that what this is?”

“I want two people with potential, and, just like you, I don’t have a lot of options here. Maybe you two can talk about it”

Agent Morse turns and looks at him, then nods.

“We’ll leave you alone”

Skye turn her attention to the door as it slides open again, this time it’s Grant, 4 soldiers are guarding him and he’s handcuffed, but he doesn’t seem to mind as his face lights up with a smile.

“Skye…”

Coulson nods at the group of soldiers and they proceed to leave.

“You have 5 minutes” He says, and then he and Agent Morse leave the room.

Grant rushes to her side, kneels down next to her bed before she can even move.

“Are you ok? They didn’t let me see you until now”

She just smiles, cups his face with her hands.

“Skye?”

“It’s over” She whispers.

“I saw him…”

She looks down “Are you scared of me?”

He shakes his head, then notices the gloves and a few bruises on her skin, peeking out of the material “What’s this?”

“I don’t know. I’ve been on and off. It just hurts”

Grant reaches for her arm with his joined hands, tries to examine her wounds.

“I don’t know if I can hurt someone, I don’t know if I can control it” She continues and Grant sits on the bed to be closer.

“You can do anything, we’ll do it together, ok?”

“After all the things I put you through?”

“Yeah. It was fun” He smiles reassuringly.

And he succeeds as she chuckles, even though he can see a few tears forming in her eyes “I think I’m scared”

“It’s normal”

“You know, I’ve always had a plan, now-“

“Now we’ll stay here until we can figure something out”

She looks up, searching for the cameras. They’re probably hearing every word. “You trust them?”

“They’re good people, and now, it’s time for us to move on”

“Do something good?” She raises an eyebrow at him.

“Maybe, or just do our thing”

“You spoke with Coulson, didn’t you?” She asks.

“I’m sure we can work something out” He leans closer. “We’ll have time, ok?”

Skye nods and finally closes the distance between them to kiss him softly.

“He’s dead. He’ll never hurt you again” Grant says and she breaks the kiss, placing her hand on his chest.

They stay like that for a moment. Staring at each other. He knows that it’ll take her some time, but she’ll make this work and he’ll be there, whatever they decide, even if they have to go against Shield.

They’re a team now, as twisted and complicated as they both are, they have each other.

“Grant” She speaks again “Where’s my father?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it, sorry if it's a bit long but I needed to have a skyeward scene somewhere :D Tell me what you think, please, I'm really happy to read what you have to say and it's a good motivation to keep going. We're close to the end.
> 
> NEXT: Skye and Grant Agents of Shield?? or bad habits die hard? maybe there will be some more dark!skyeward coming your way.


	11. Making friends and killing people

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Skye and Ward Agents of Shield or bad habits die hard? Maybe the protocols are just not for them. Three months after Puerto Rico, things have changed a lot for them, now they're trying to do the right thing and kill the bad guys, which is also very profitable.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you like time jumps.

Octavian Bloom was one of Whitehall’s closest friends, one of the most powerful hydra heads left. A bit of a perv, traitorous and very, very paranoid.

A piece of cake.

The man smiles at her as he pours more cognac in her glass.

These men she knows well. The kind that hide behind money and power. He wouldn’t trust anyone because he would betray anyone, but he was still just a man. She sees him staring at her when she crosses her legs and the fabric of her dress slides up a bit.

“Our organization is at a very fragile state” Bloom says, offering her the glass, which she takes.

“I know. Still better than shield, probably”

The man sighs and sits in front of them. “Shield… the rumors said that you were captured, Mr. Bakshi”

“The rumors were right” Bakshi answers “I was lucky that Miss Whitehall was able to send for me when I was being transported. The new director is running a tight ship. Their operation is small but strong. We haven’t been able to place any operatives inside”

“And yet, they placed agents inside our ranks, two of them, under your supervision. I wouldn’t say that we’re doing a lot better than Shield”

“That-“ Skye says “That only proves that we shouldn’t underestimate them, and their influence. We’re here to celebrate a new beginning, not to blame each other. If anything, my family has been the most affected by this situation”

“You’re right. Daniel was a great loss, both for Hydra and for us. He was a part of the Red Skull’s legacy, and now all of that is gone. It’s a tragedy”

Skye frowns at that but before she can say anything else, Bloom gets a message in his phone. He smiles.

“Our corrupted leadership has been cleansed”

She smiles “It’s the start of a new Hydra, with us at the top”

“Mr. Bakshi, would you mind, giving us a moment?” Bloom says and the other man looks at Skye. She nods and he leaves.

“Your father left us, but I’m sure you’ll bring honor to his name, and be a great leader” He says, leaving his chair to sit next to her. “Young blood and experienced blood” He smiles and leans closer.

That’s when Grant kicks the door open, always one for the dramatic entrances. He aims his gun at Bloom.

“What’s the meaning of this?” He stands up.

“You said yourself, cleaning corrupted leadership” Grant says and then shoots him right between his eyes. “Also for staring at my girl like that”

“Wow…” She crosses her arms “Are you going to drag me by my hair back to your cave?”

He smirks “I might”

Then he walks closer, he grabs her waist and pulls her against his body before he kisses her possessively.

“There’s a dead guy here,” She says against his lips, but she doesn’t try to stop.

"There’s a bunch of dead guys out there” He responds, and then she pauses, with Grant actually chasing after her lips as she moves her head back.

“And there’s our puppy” She says and Grant turns around.

“What are we going to do about you?”

“I’m happy to do what you want, sir” Bakshi replies, looking down.

“I think he served his purpose,” She says.

“Okay” Grant replies and aims his gun at Bakshi.

“Woah, woah…” She grabs his arm and pulls it down “There’s no need for that”

“Don’t want me to kill your boyfriend?”

She rolls her eyes “We’re seriously not doing this right now”

“What?”

She doesn’t even answer to that and walks past him.

“Come on, babe” He follows her.

“Bring him! We need to load to truck” She says.

Grant turns back to Bakshi “You heard the woman”

“Yes, sir. I’m happy to comply”

 

* * *

 

**3 MONTHS EARLIER**

 

She’s at the lab again, with the couple of mad scientist _again_ … the poor guy clearly has it bad for Agent Simmons.

“Ow” Skye complains.

“Sorry” Jemma says “you know we need the blood”

“Yeah, but exactly how much? Did we talk about that? Because at this rate you’re probably going to drain me dry soon” Skye replies, folding her arm. At least they’re letting her out of that white room. She feels like she’s going to go mad if she spends more time in there. “What are you even looking for?”

“That’s classified” Fitz says as he approaches Simmons.

“Oh, really? The information about my weird alien DNA?”

Jemma gives Fitz a look and, after hesitating for a moment, she speaks again “We don’t know what we’re looking for, because your samples look totally normal. Maybe if we had your blood from before… the event, we could compare it, but in this situation we have to go through the whole sequence, it could take some time until we discover what’s different”

“I can tell you what’s different. I have earthquake powers”

“And we don’t know where they come from” Fitz adds, “We’re trying to make some sense of it”

Skye sighs, frustrated. The gloves are uncomfortable, and painful. They figured out that the powers get out of control with her emotions, if she gets stressed or angry, so they’re trying (and failing miserably) to be nice, they even let Grant back out in the field and out of his vault. In return, she’s doing her best to try to be chill about this situation. It’s not like she couldn’t handle a little underground captivity before.

At least there’s some stuff to do at the base, and there are windows…

She needs to get out of here.

“When’s Grant coming back?”

Fitz is back checking something on his tablet “Soon” he says.

 

* * *

 

 

“So it’s just going to be, strictly, mission talk?” Grant asks from the back of the quinjet. May is piloting and Hunter is sitting next to her.

“Sorry mate, I might be her favorite person in this plane, and that’s really saying something”

They’re landing now. Grant decides that maybe he should remain quiet.

Or just…

“You know, I’m trying to build back trust here”

“You shouldn’t have broken it in first place, then” May says.

“And we’re trying to be cooperative. We let you tag us like dogs and-“ He says as he stretches his leg to see the device attached to his ankle, but then May makes a really aggressive turn she lovers the plane inside the base, making Grant almost fall off his chair. “Okay, okay” He says as Hunter tries to hide his smirk.

He waits for them to land and for May to leave.

“Hunter!”

He’s picking up his equipment “Look, I’ve heard the stories, I’m honestly not like the biggest fan of shield so-“

Grant shakes his head “No, no. I had a question”

Hunter looks at him “Ask away”

“I… you probably know of a place inside the base that’s a bit more… private”

Lance raises his eyebrows “Oh, just wait there. Look, I understand but you are not supposed to be alone and without an adult. I’m not a shield fan but I know how to follow my orders, sorry” He’s about to go but Grant grabs his arm.

“Come on, man. Skye lives in a bunker full of cameras and I in a shared room full of other agents, it’s really just… 5 minutes”

“Wow, she’s a lucky gal”

Grant laughs at that “Just help a brother out?”

 

* * *

 

 

“Doctor Garner is coming this afternoon”

Skye sighs “Great, can’t wait” She walks to her bed and sits down. Back to the white room.

Bobbi stays quiet for a moment “How are the bruises going?” She asks.

“I think I’m getting used to them, but they’re getting better”

“You don’t have to use the gloves all the time in this room”

“I know” Skye starts trying to pull down her left glove, it does hurt a little.

“Here” Bobbi approaches her and helps her take off the gauntlet gently.

“Why do you even want me here? This is clearly going nowhere and I can’t help like Grant, in fact, I’m threat”

“Do you want to be a threat?”

Skye doesn’t answer to that, so Bobbi continues “You can help us understand, and be prepared, maybe you’ll be able to help one day, that’s what shield does”

Then the door slides open. It’s Grant.

“Gonna leave you guys alone” Bobbi says and nods to greet Grant, and then she leaves.

“Sure, alone” Skye says, bracing her legs with her arms.

“Hello, beautiful”

“Hi, sweetie. How was work? I wanted to cook you dinner but then I remembered that I don’t know how to, and that we live in an underground secret base”

Grant chuckles at that and then joins her on the bed. She scoots over to let him sit next to her.

“This rooms makes me feel like I live in George Orwell book,” she says as Grant grabs her right arm to help her take off her other glove.

“You haven’t had any episodes in weeks, and the bruises are fading” He says, gently running his fingers across her aching skin, but it feels nice.

She closes her eyes.

It’s really been a long, long time for them, since they were in Brazil, enjoying the ocean, and the breeze, and her mind immediately goes back there, to his hands all over her body, and his lips on her skin.

Then she feels his mouth on hers, and it’s real, but really brief.

“I tried to find a place for us to sneak out of here for a bit, but apparently it’s impossible” He whispers, his lips still so close to hers.

She pulls him by his short to kiss him again, harder, deeper, taking all the breath out of him.

She doesn’t care that everyone in this base can see them full on making out, and probably neither does Grant as he just leans closer and moans against her lips, letting her tongue inside his mouth, entangling it with his.

His hand moves to her hip to pull her even closer and as they move clumsily on the bed, her hand ends up brushing his crotch. He’s hard. She bites his lips and pushes him back just a bit as she catches her breath.

“Do you really care?”

“About what?” He replies, but he’s just staring at her lips.

He notices that she glances up to one of the cameras though, and he swallows. She’s moving her finger up his chest “I really don’t” And that wicked grin that he has not seen in so long, then, appears.

She moves her hand to the growing bulge in his pants again, stroking him, and Grant buries his face against her neck, moaning softly. “You’re going to kill me,” He says.

She laughs, but then he’s pushing her on the bed, kissing her again. He doesn’t really care. He’ll get her under the sheets, maybe leave her t-shirt on and that will do. He needs her so bad, and if the way she’s grinding against his erection is any sign of it she wants it as bad as he does.

“God, it’s been so long,” She says, yanking his shirt.

When she’s done, she tries to take off hers, but Grant stops her.

“What?”

“That view is for my eyes only” He says, pulling the hem of her black t-shirt down, again and smiling.

Then he gets up and kicks off his boots and pants.

“So they get to see your cute little butt”

He winces “If they want to, and don’t say it like that” then he pulls at the sheets, making Skye squeal in surprise, but she accommodates herself under the white fabric, also managing to get rid of her shoes, throwing them at him.

“Come here”

Grant immediately joins her under the sheets, covering her body. Skye doesn’t waste time in grabbing his ass firmly, pressing him closer to her core as she spreads her legs.

She moans, so into it that she fails to notice the small tremor in the room, but Grant does.

“Take it easy” He says, and then his lips find her neck, sucking lightly on her skin, and moving up to her jaw and her ear as she moves her hands inside his boxer briefs. He feels her nails on his ass.

“We’re going to have to get you out of those pants” He says, and then starts fumbling with the button of her jeans. “Maybe just… get you to relax a bit”

He slides his hand inside her underwear; she’s already so wet and ready for him. This time even he doesn’t notice that the room has started to shake again. He can’t focus on that, only on his name on her lips and her moans, the way she closes her legs around his hand and claws at his back, urging him to touch her.

But when he pushes his finger inside her she yells, and the whole room shakes violently.

It also hurts a bit, something inside his chest “Fuck…” He lets out.

That’s when she opens her eyes. That wasn’t a good _fuck,_ she knows how a good _fuck_ sounds like.

She pushes him away.

“I’m ok, I’m ok” He reassures her.

The room quickly stops shaking, but Skye doesn’t say anything. She’s just trying to catch her breath and looking at him with a puzzled expression on her face.

“Skye, it’s ok”

She moves away from him. “I hurt you”

“No. I’m ok” He raises his hands, trying to calm her down.

She pushes his hands away “Would you stop it with that?”

“I’m sorry”

She looks down. “This was a stupid idea”

“Are you mad at me?”

She shakes her head “No” then sits against the headboard “No. I’m mad at the stupid world because I can’t even fuck the guy I love because of Daniel Whitehall”

He frowns “Did you just-“

“Oh, get over it”

“Wow…” He sits, trying to cover his misery with one of her pillows.

“I’m sorry,” She says.

“Don’t be” He’s smiling, like an idiot.

“I could just… help you out”

“I’m ok”

“Maybe you should ask Simmons to check you for any internal injuries or something?” She keeps talking, biting her nails.

“Skye”

“Yes?”

“I lo-“

“Nope. No, no, no” She practically yells and raises a finger before him “We’ll figure this out first. What if we can’t have sex without me killing everybody in this base? So don’t say things that-“

“Woah, woah… calm down”

She sighs, and Grant sighs next to her. She grabs her gloves on the nightstand. “This fucking sucks”

He helps her with the gloves, but doesn’t say anything else for a few minutes.

“You sure you’re ok?” He asks when she finally tries to relax and leans against him. She shakes her head.

“I remembered what I did to Whitehall”

“Do you regret it?”

“Not for a second. I just- What if I do that to you?” She asks, her voice breaking in the last question.

“You won’t. You’re getting better every day”

“We need to find Cal, maybe he knows something” She looks at him “Maybe he’ll help”

“Shield’s on it”

She places her head against his chest as Grant wraps his arm around her “I’m getting tired of waiting in here”

“You just have to say the word”

 

* * *

 

 

**TODAY**

 

“Ok that’s all of them” Grant says, as they load the last duffel bag inside the black SUV. “That could last us a lifetime, or a couple of months if I let you do the shopping”

“Ha-ha, I’m a spoiled rich girl, very funny” she protests. “Do I have to remind you that this was my idea?”

“Nope. Although I thought that this was a Robin Hood kind of thing” He says as he closes the door.

“Gosh, no” She says and then speaks to Bakshi “Get inside”

The man nods and obeys.

Grant doesn’t look happy about it “I don’t see why we can’t just kill him?”

They get inside the car too. Grant is driving.

“Stop it with that, there’s no reason-“

“Bakshi, did you ever fuck Skye?”

Bakshi looks at her “Yes, sir”

Then Grant looks at her.

“Okay, okay. I see your point”

“Thank you” Grant replies as he starts the engine and they drive away.

“I just-“

“What?”

“Bakshi, you were there when the Bloom said that Whitehall was a part of the Red Skull’s legacy, right?”

“Yes, Miss Skye”

She speaks to Grant, “I heard rumors, I read some stuff but I never really had real evidence”

“About what?” Grant asks.

She turns to Bakshi again “Did Whitehall meet the Red Skull?”

“That’s ridi-“

“Yes. His real name was Werner Reinhardt. He was the Obergruppenführer in the Red Skull’s army”

“What the-“

“How’s that we didn’t ask him that first!” Skye says, “I'm an idiot. God, how old was he?” She’s not really asking, but Bakshi still answers.

“He was 110 years old”

“Holy shit” Grant says.

“Don’t you see it? That’s gotta be it!”

“Gotta be what?”

“He wouldn’t stop going about how he was here thanks to my mom” She turns back to Bakshi “How did he do it? How was he still alive?”

“I’m afraid I don’t know much. It was thanks to his research and experimentation”

“Yeah, sure…” She says “We have to go there”

“You said you didn’t want to go back to his house”

“I know, but maybe we can find something more about her. Even a clue to find Cal?”

“You have to accept the possibility that he could be dead”

“Ward…”

“It’s been a really long time, and I saw him get shot…”

“Yet he killed John Garret!”

“And I didn’t”

“I didn’t say that”

“And I left your father there”

“Grant. I didn’t say that, okay? I’m sorry. Jesus, we need to stop doing this, seriously”

“Stop doing what?”

“Acting like an old, boring, married couple”

“We just killed almost every Hydra leader. That’s boring?”

She rolls her eyes “Alright. I know what’s going on here” She looks at him “You want to kill Bakshi? Go ahead, kill him”

“It’s not about that”

“We used to fuck. A lot”

Grant suddenly stops the car, grabbing the steering wheel with both his hands.

“I even let him go for the back door a couple of times. Not really my thing, that’s why we never-“

“Okay, that’s it!” Grant stops her and then turns to Bakshi “Get out of the car”

“Yes, sir”

Grant pulls out his gun and then follows Bakshi out of the car as Skye rolls her eyes again and wait for him.

She feels something hitting against the back of the car and then hears a single shot.

A moment later Grant is back inside the car.

“You happy?”

“I gave him Coulson’s number and ordered him to walk until he finds a place where he can call him”

“But I heard a gunshot”

Grant pouts “I shot him in the leg”

She chuckles at that.

“I take you’re not mad ad me?”

“I want to ride you so hard right now”

His mouth drops but he can’t manage a single syllable.

“Would you take us out of here, or we could do it in the car”

He quickly starts the car again and they drive away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok how was that? I just wanted to brink back a little evil. You'll find out more the next chapter, also... be ready for the smut. It's been a long time for them, but there's more to it, believe me.
> 
> NEXT: How did they escape shield? And She does ride him, but she's still very afraid of her powers. Will they find any clues about Skye parents?


	12. 5 Richter scale

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Grant wants to try something new to make Skye more comfortable with her powers. Meanwhile we discover how they escaped Shield. After the night they spend together Skye might be ready to say something she's been holding to Grant but they get interrupted by an unexpected visitor.

**THREE MONTHS EARLIER**

 

“The Devil of Hell’s Kitchen” She says absentmindedly, staring at the tv.

That catches Grant’s attention. He drops the files he’s been studying for his next assignment on the mattress and looks at her “What?”

Skye points at the tv, remote in her hand “There’s a dude that’s been beating up gangs in New York. On his own”

Grant turns his attention to the news.

“He’s not an avenger, no one knows who he is” She adds.

“It was a matter of time before this super hero trend turned into vigilantism”

“They call him the devil though, that’s pretty ominous. Maybe he has crazy powers”

“And he chose to use them for the greater good apparently”

“I could do it” She says and turns to him. Grant smiles.

“You could”

“But I wouldn’t do it. That guy is gonna end up dead soon. He’s an idiot”

“Maybe he has a reason to do what he does”

“Yeah but, doing the whole secret identity… lurking in the shadows, that’s just plain stupid”

“That could be more efficient than having crazy powers” He says, and then elaborates when Skye looks confused “Theatrics… like Batman”

“Didn’t take you for a comic book nerd”

“It has lost its appeal now that we have real life heroes”

“And monsters”

Grant scoots closer to her “That’s not what you are”

“Well, I’m certainly not a hero. Although, it wouldn’t feel so bad to do something about all those hydra assholes that are still alive” 

“Shield will take care of that” He says, and wraps his arm around her as she leans against his chest.

“When do you leave for your next mission?”

“Friday”

She pouts.

Then the door slides open

“Sorry to interrupt” Hunter says, stepping inside Skye’s room.

Skye sighs and ducks her head against Grant’s chest “Come on. We promised it wouldn’t happen again, we’re just talking ” 

Hunter looks down “We agreed we wouldn’t bring that up again. Ever”

She rolls her eyes as she sits upright, facing him “We didn’t actually do _anything_ thanks to my fancy, new cock-blocking powers”

“Ok” Hunter stops her “That’s none of my business. Fitzsimmons asked you to come to the lab and I’m just the messenger”

“I’m so done with all that. I, seriously, just want a day without another needle. I’m actually getting used to this ro-“

“Look. I’m just going to leave, go get a beer and pretend that I’m not your bloody babysitter, love. You go if you want to go. They have their crazy scientists faces on. Maybe it’s important”

Skye stands up “And let me guess, they never share anything with you?”

“Oh no. They do, unfortunately. I just kind of ignore it when it gets too sci-fi. No offense”

“You’re quite the charmer, aren’t you?” Skye says and Lance smiles at them before leaving the room

  

* * *

 

**PRESENT DAY**

 

Her back hits the wall, hard, after Grant kicks their hotel room’s door shut. They have barely made it inside when his lips seek hers.

She’s not surprised. Grant is a very possessive man when provoked, but like… in a really good, pleasurable way. He presses his body against hers, he bites, and he digs his fingers on her butt to lift her up.

Skye saw this coming; from the moment he started driving like a maniac to get them to the closest hotel; and then, as his eyes darkened with lust when they had to take the stairs to the third floor in complete silence, with the old lady that shared tips about food and tourism that they were not hearing.

He’s sucking on her neck, whispering that she’s his, and he’s just hers. It does come out like a question, a plea, as if he’s not completely sure that she’s okay with that. So her answer is a breathy ‘yes’. She arches her neck back and wraps her legs around him, keeping her arms to her sides, her palms flat against the cold wall, and she’s trying her hardest not to touch him.

The friction just makes her want more. It almost makes her forget about it.

“Wait, wait, wait” She says, breathless, as Grant bites on the juncture of her neck. She tries to shove him back, but then he’s back, devouring her lips. She can’t protest to that.

“Babe” She insists, moves one hand to touch his face briefly. That catches his attention. “The gloves” She says.

“You don’t need them” He says and leans forward again, but Skye stops him.

“Grant” She stops him “It’s not going to happen without the gloves”

“Yeah” He says and drops her to the floor, which almost makes her loose her balance. “And even then, are you even going to touch me? I know what you were doing”

“Come on, sweetheart, don’t get all sensitive on me”

“Look, it’s not about me. It’s about you, and it’s not funny, you can’t just live like that forever”

She sighs “I’ve got it under control, I don’t even use them all the time anymore, and the bruising stopped, I- I just don’t want to risk it” She smiles and approaches him again “You know how you can make me loose control” then she places her hands on his chest “I want to touch you everywhere” She sees how Grant closes his eyes and practically melts under her palms “But I won’t risk it” She says as she moves her hand down to cup his growing erection under the fabric of his pants “It took us a long time to get here, let’s not ruin it”

He opens his eyes “I don’t want you to worry about that all the time”

“I won’t”

“I have an idea,” He says, smiling down to her and grabbing her wrist before kissing her hand.

“Are we going to play?” She smiles back, seductively.

“Something like that” He says and walks towards the bed, getting rid of his leather jacket “Get undressed”

 

* * *

 

 

**3 MONTHS AGO**

 

“Wow” Skye says. They’re all reunited at Coulson’s office, with a science treaty on the wall monitor and after a long explanation that only left her more confused.

“Exaclty, wow” Fitz says.

“So I’m not an alien”

“You are as human as it gets” Simmons adds “That’s why we couldn’t find anything, we were asking the wrong questions. Your DNA is human, it’s just… it’s more. Your metabolism, immune response, reflexes, resistance, even mental capabilities and understanding of logic processes, it’s all near perfect, perfect I would say”

“It’s not Captain America levels but it’s still remarkable, especially your brain readings” Fitz continues, “We have no way to determine if it was like that before”

“Maybe that’s why Whitehall couldn’t brainwash me when I was little”

“He tried?” Grant asks, failing to hide his sudden burst of anger.

“I guess. I don’t really remember but I have memories of a lot of trips to his dungeons of evil, most of them just to watch, but I kind of blocked most of it. He didn’t deny it though”

“That makes sense, because… we have a theory”

“We have evidence of the visit of the Kree race to our planet, and the city and the temple, even the diviner was connected to you” Simmons says “You told us that your real father talked about a gift and people that are like you. So the diviner didn’t have any powers, it magic of any of that nonsense” She almost chuckles but continues when she sees the curious looks en everyone’s faces, then clears her throat “it was science”

“Like really, really advance technology. We believe the diviner acted as a device that could read your genetic markers when you touched it, and killed everything that didn’t have the right DNA. It wasn’t a key, you were the key and the mist activated a mutation”

“So I’m a mutant?”

“We believe you could be part of an experiment”

“That’s great” Skye says, looking down “How? I don’t-“

“It’s not recent. It was inherited” Simmons says

“What about the powers?”

“That’s… more complicated. With all the tests we ran, we just concluded that you’re not provoking earthquakes, not just that. You see everything is in constant state of motion, from atoms to the whole earth” Fitz starts “what you can do is tap into that, you can manipulate the very source of that motion, so, at a large scale you could move the earth, but, theoretically, you could also manipulate matter on a subatomic level, even induce nuclear reactions or-“

“Woah… I’m not going to do that” She looks at Coulson “I’m not planning to do that” She says but the Director just continues staring in silence, with his arms crossed and leaning against his desk “I just want to get rid of it”

“I’m afraid it’s not possible, the change was produced for the mutation in your DNA, in every single cell of your body” Simmons answer “But it could still be controlled, maybe with more time we can keep studying it and-“

“And keep me locked in here until I die!”

“I’m afraid you lack better options for the moment” Coulson finally intervenes

“She didn’t ask for this! She’s not a threat, or lab rat” Grant counters, stepping in front of Skye.

“What about you, Ward? You weren’t asking for this? Because you’re here as a prisoner. So don’t forget your place” May says.

“I’m not forgetting my place. I’m doing what I’m told to do. Like I’ve done my whole life, I’m good soldier, right?. But we had a deal, and she’s doesn’t deserve this. Just be straight for one time. What’s going to happen?”

“We can’t just let her back into the world” Coulson says “It’s dangerous, even for her. This is new; we don’t know how to handle it yet. We’re trying to figure this out. Fitz and Simmons-”

“And meanwhile? More needles. It’s gonna be Skye locked inside that white room. I thought you cared about people, but I don’t think you’re any better than me”

“Grant, stop” Skye pleads, and that’s when the room shakes slightly “I- I’m sorry” She looks down and tries to control it. “I think Coulson is right”

Grant looks at her, frowning. He decides to ignore that last part “You’re going to hurt yourself”

“Take her to her room” Coulson orders, but before anyone can move Grant shoots them a very angry look.

He takes Skye’s arm “Skye no-“

“I want to be in my room!” She shouts “I can’t… it’s really hard” the shaking has stopped now.

He nods as then guides her out of the office without even looking at the group of agents.

They let them go, and once they’re far enough and alone, walking down the corridors, Skye finally speaks.

“We need to get out of here”

“Did you just do that on purpose?”

“It still hurts to control it”

“Why would you do that, then?”

“Forget about it, Grant. We _need_ to leave”

“I know. I told you about my next mission, remember?”

“3 days”

“3 days” He confirms as he watches her adjust her gloves. Whatever she just let out in the office was clearly on purpose, but it doesn’t mean it’s not hurting her. He squeezes her hand reassuringly.

 

* * *

 

**PRESENT DAY**

 

“Alright” She says waiting for him, completely naked, on the bed. Grant is also bare before her eyes; it’s quite a view. “Gloves” She demands.

Grant shakes his head, to her annoyance.

“Let’s try something”

“I’m not going to lay a finger on you until-“

He gets on the bed, crawling over her body, and she swallows. At this point, even just a kiss could make her loose control.

“You’re not going to touch me” Grant whispers, grabbing her own wrist and moving her hand over her body “I have a theory”

He’s hovering over her, leaning on his elbow and leaving enough space for him to guide her.

“What are you doing?” She smiles, still uncertain.

Grant only keeps guiding her hand south “We know how it works… sort of” He says, leans down and kisses her neck.

She’s still tense but the soft sigh she just let out is a good sign.

“We know you can feel everything”

“It’s easier said than done” She closes her eyes when her fingers brush against her already wet core. His low, raspy voice certainly doesn’t help with her arousal.

“Except with your own body. You can read what it wants, what it needs” He kisses her “touch yourself for me”

“Grant…” She whispers, moving her fingers faster.

“Just feel” He says and kisses her again, harder, feeling he moan as soon as he pushes her lips open with his tongue.

Her left hand is cupping her own breast. This could be a really bad idea… or he could be right. The only thing that she knows is that maybe this won’t be enough. He’s only barely touching her and she wants more.

“Hey” he scolds “Just trust me. If you learn how to read your body maybe it’ll be easier to read mine”

“I need you” She replies, breathless.

Grant responds by attacking her throat, sucking on her skin and kissing his way down to her shoulder. “Then finish for me, and then I’ll make you scream all night long babe”

She bites her lip as her finger dips inside her core. She’s getting there, Grant’s ministrations help her with her objective, and she’s kind of feeling it, the way her body reacts and shakes almost imperceptibly.

He kisses her again and she feels like she’s melting inside. She opens her legs wide, and moves her fingers faster, rubbing herself just the right way, sending waves of pleasure through her body.

“God, you’re hot” Grant says and Skye just moans “you have no idea how much I’m enjoying watching you”

“Fuck, Grant”

He knows that the bed is moving, but she hasn’t noticed it yet “It’ll be me in a minute. Keep going”

She’s feeling something entirely new, something powerful; it’s like a soft, steady pulse running trough her body. She’s really, really close.

“What if I order you to come now?”

“Almost…” She moans.

“Now” Grant insists, leaning down to speak against her ear “Do it now”

She feels it all, the pulse is emanating from her own fingers inside her body, it grows stronger and more sharp, it’s almost too much, so she moans louder.

And then she’s coming so hard. She barely feels Grant’s hands, or hears his voice. Her orgasm is sudden and maybe the strongest one she’s had in the last couple of months. It leaves her trembling and lanky for a couple of minutes.

When she opens her eyes she sees his big, perverted smile.

“That was quite a show” He says.

“I have no idea what that was” She’s just recovering her breath “but it felt amazing”

“I just figured your powers could have some creative applications”

She chuckles “Off course you would think about that”

“If we learn to use it maybe you don’t have to be afraid all the time” His tone changes to a softer one, and then he picks her hand and places a kiss on her palm.

She finally moves, rolls on her side to face him. “I know that the sex hasn’t been like… the best, the last couple of months”

“Still pretty good”

She smiles “Maybe we can learn… just… baby steps okay?”

“Okay. Just tell me what you want”

Her hands move to his chest to push him on his back “I wasn’t joking when I talked about riding you” then her fingers start tracing patterns over his abs, moving further south.

“Shit, I missed your hands” He says, a full, lustful smile on his lips.

She pumps him a few times “We’re not there yet” She jokes as she moves to straddle his hips.

Skye’s still dripping after her orgasm and she’s deliberately grinding against his sore cock. A man can only take that much. He grips her legs to stop her.

“Baby, maybe we should skip to the main course”

“Aww… are you having a hard time?” She teases, leaning down a little so he gets a full view of her boobs.

“You know I am”

“Maybe I should torture you like you just did”

“I thought you enjoyed it?”

“Yeah. But it wasn’t nearly enough” She says changing her voice for a slower, softer one, as she slides down his body again. Grant can only dig his fingers harder against her legs.

“Skye…” He almost begs.

“You know you have to tell me if you feel something weird, right?”

“Focus on my body, like you just did with yours,” He says and Skye nods.

She raises on her knees, just enough to grab Grant’s dick again and guide him inside her body. They both moan as she sinks down him, and she does it slowly, feeling every inch of him as he stretches her out.

Now she has noticed the bed shaking slightly, but she can keep it under control. They are just starting. 

“Stop thinking” He says.

“Sorry”

Then she’s moving, immediately picking pace. She wants to make this really good. They really deserve it.

And it seems like Grant has the same idea, because his hips push up hard enough to make her moan out loud, and his hands are going everywhere, moving up her ass and to her back to push her down to capture her lips. 

She goes gladly, their kiss hot and dirty and accompanied by moans and curses as she moves her hips faster. She feels his hands moving from her back to her boobs, squeezing her flesh hard and rubbing her sensitive nipples repeatedly, which is doing all sorts of things for her.

So she sits up, earning a sound of protest from Grant, soon replaced by a loud growl as she starts clenching around him, moving her hips in circles. Now she has noticed the bed shaking. But she doesn’t want to stop.

“Everything alright?” She asks for good measure, but it comes out as a whimper.

“So good” Grant is just as wrecked as she is, moving his hands to her ass, encouraging her to go harder.

She leans down, she bites his lips and kisses him savagely. Her boos rub against his hardened chest and that sends electricity through her sensitive skin. She just wants more, presses her whole body against him, and Grant is digging his fingers in her cheeks, moaning.

“God, Grant… tell… me” She insists.

But then he just comes, suddenly, groaning loudly, digging his fingers on her flesh and writhing in pleasure. Skye can feel it inside her, as he gushes uncontrollably and the only thing that can come out of his mouth is her name. It’s kind of empowering, to see him like that. She enjoys it, she wants to give him even more.

Grant takes some time to reorganize his thoughts. He opens his eyes and loosens his grip on her legs. He knows that he’ll probably leave some bruises, but he also knows that she doesn’t care.

“Sorry”

She smiles and chuckles down at him. She’s sitting now.

“I kind of felt something”

Her expression changes abruptly to a very angry scowl. “What?”

“No, no, no, no…. it was… really good”

“You know you have to tell me!”

“I couldn’t! something… vibrated and I just lost it”

“Grant”

“I swear, it was the most incredible thing that I’ve felt in my life” He says and strokes her legs softly, moving his hands up and down.

She sighs.

“Babe”

“What?”

“You didn’t hurt me, you wouldn’t. You just gave me the best orgasm in my life”

She crosses her arms and sees his eyes drifting down to her boobs. Of course, it’s _Grant._

“We have to be careful” She insists.

“Uhm…”

“What now?”

“Nothing”

“You’re getting hard again” She says, of course she’s noticed. He’s still inside her.

He smiles proudly “We can go slow” 

“Ward”

Then he just moves and flips them effortlessly, pinning her down to the bed and moving slowly in and out as he sees the words dying on her lips.

“Grant…”

“Come on, I kind of owe you something”

He just keeps moving. His thrusts are slow but hard and punctuated. He’s really making a good point here and Skye can barely find the energy to protest.

She moves her hands to his back, up to hold onto his shoulders.

“I hate you” She says.

Grant goes a little faster “Just give me a couple of minutes and you’ll be screaming how much you love me”

“You wish”

“I kind of do” He replies staring into her eyes. He really want to just hear her say it.

But she decides that maybe she should do something to cut the tension here, because… it’s not just… that easy.

She wraps her arm around his necks and pulls him down for a kiss. He should have his answer with this. She kisses him with everything, baring her soul in it. She does love him, but she doesn’t want to just say it. Not until they’re safe and away from everything.

Grant doesn’t push it, his hands travel from her hips to her sides and her boobs as he moves faster. Skye closes her legs around him, digging her heels on his butt and pushing him harder. He takes the hint, he knows how she likes to be fucked. It doesn’t have to be slow and tender to show her that he loves her. He fucks her roughly and makes her cry out in pleasure and hold onto him like he’s everything she’s got, and he fucks her so desperately like a lost soul that has found something worth living for because she’s everything he’s got. So they do make love, on their own way, even if she can’t say it out loud, he can feel it.

She tries to focus but it’s really hard when she’s so close. Her body can feel his, she can feel his hearth, she can feel everything even with her eyes closed, and she tries to let her power flows in the same rhythm, that’s what she just did and it seemed to work pretty well. Nothing matters outside of Grant, she doesn’t care if the bed is shaking, if the paintings on the walls are grumbling or if the lamp on the nightstand is about to fall. She doesn’t care if the whole earth is about to crack; she just has to worry about him. He’s moaning her name, kissing his way down her neck, biting her nipple, licking her skin and driving her insane.

“God, Skye, tell me that you’re close”

She nods.

“You’re amazing, have I tell you that?”

She nods again, smiling, biting her bottom lip.

“Maybe I haven’t tell you how irresistible that is” He says, moving faster, almost a brutal pace, making her scream and clench around him, press her legs tighter around his hips.

“Fuck, Grant, fuck… fuck” She yells and claws at his shoulders, coming her brains out, her brain exploding into a million pieces that almost makes her pass out. She feels it, the way her body vibrates in completely new ways, so maybe Grant was right because it feels amazing.

She just hadn’t had an orgasm this good in so long. She feels boneless, completely drained and without the energy to do anything when strong arms race her middle and pull her against a warm body. She just exhales happily, feeling his lips on her neck and she could have been like this for a whole hour and don’t even notice.

“Ok… mind blown” She finally says.

 “I know”

“Did you come?” She asks, placing her arm over his and trying to press her butt against him to see if he’s still hard.

“Hell yeah I did” He says and bites her shoulder “Mind blown”

“Are you ok?” She asks sleepily.

“More than ok. You’ll have to pay for the mess though”

“Uhu”

Grant laughs, holds her tighter “We leave tomorrow”

 

* * *

 

**3 MONTHS EARLIER**

 

“I still don’t know why you would volunteer for this. Do you trust him?” Hunter asks, as he follows Bobbi in the hangar.

“Enough to know he won’t try to kill me. I guess. Look, there’s like a lot of bad blood between him and Coulson’s team but they can’t deny that he’s pretty good at his job, and believe me, even if he tried something… I’m pretty sure I can handle him”

Lance sighs, with his hands on his hips. “Alright. I’ll be with mission control”

She frowns “You’re my ex, Hunter. Not my father”

“Didn’t feel like an ex last night” He approaches her, smirking and Bobbi smiles back as Lance moves to kiss her.

But then someone clears his throat behind them.

“Time to go, Agent Morse” Grant says as he moves to the quinjet.

“Ugh” Lance complains.

“He’s not that bad”

Then he’s frowning again, looks at Bobbi “He’s also quite a looker”

“Should _I_ be worried?” She teases

“That would only mean that you care”

Then Bobbi is the one leaning to kiss him with a smile on her face.

“Don’t die out there, alright?”

“I wouldn’t dare”

“Morse!” Grant insists.

“Shut up Ward! Don’t you have a girlfriend to say goodbye to?”

“Uhm… listen. I’ll be just fine, ok? I promise” She kisses him again, and then leaves him with a troubled expression on his face.

“Come on, we have a mission, remember?” Grant says.

“Did you wake up on the wrong side of your bed this morning?”

They close the quinjet’s ramp as they speak. Grant moves to sit on the pilot’s position and she sits right next to him.

“This Agent Morse, with Shield 032 requesting permission for take off,” She says and waits for their confirmation while Grant starts the engine.

The plane lifts slowly, and they only pick up speed once the roof is completely open.

“Ok, now what?” He asks.

“I would suggest we make out in your chair”

“Oh really? I thought you would prefer to kiss Hunter instead”

She chuckles and then peels the nano-mask off her face. Her voice changes back “I had to sell the part, get in character”

Grant sets the autopilot while Skye proceeds to take off the blond wig

“He could have noticed that Bobbi was wearing heels, which she never does. I had to distract him”

“He’s going to die when I see him again”

Skye chuckles. She proceeds to unbuckle her safety belts and moves to straddle Grant on his seat.

“Maybe I could distract you” She purrs, lacing her arms around him. The poor guy doesn’t stand a chance. He just places his hands over her hips, chases her lips without a word.

He’s so… possessive. He always is, even if he’s not jealous (like right now) but that just makes it even better. The problem is that the fact that they haven’t fucked in so long it’s also making it quite uncomfortable. 

“You know” Grant says, moving his hips to her jaw “We’re in the air, it’s safe here… if we-“

She smiles, still enjoying his ministrations, because he has not stopped moving his hands, that now are on her boobs. “Yeah, I could just bring the plane down and kill us”

Grant stops, he actually pouts like a little child.

“And Morse is here” She points at the unconscious body with her chin. They just hid her behind some crates and covered her with black sailcloth after Grant Iced her.

He looks so disappointed “Right”

“We need to wake her up”

He sighs.

“Come on” Skye says, leaving his lap “I promise we’ll try… soon”

Grant follows her after pressing the button to lower the cargo ramp and crouches next to Bobbi, pulling the sailcloth off of her. “Ok Agent Morse, time to wake up” He moves her.

“How long does it last?”

“She should be waking up now”

Then they hear a groan.

“It does leave you with a headache” Grant adds.

“Fuck you, Ward” Bobbi mumbles.

“Maybe you should follow her advice” Grant tells Skye

“Ha-Ha” She says and crouches next to Bobbi. “Hey, we’re really sorry, we didn’t want to hurt you… or give you a headache”

“What do you want with me?”

“Oh. Nothing” Grant says.

“We just want you to hold this” Skye says, giving her a black backpack.

“Here” Grant offers her his hand “You’re not tied or anything. You’re not a prisoner ok?” He says as he helps her up “We just had to leave because being there wasn’t doing any good to Skye”

“You can tell Coulson that we’re going to disappear, he doesn’t have to worry about us, but we were not going to be anyone’s toy soldiers” Skye says.

“Are we good? Please don’t try to-“ Grant is saying when Bobbi tries to punch him. “Woah! Stop!”

“You’re coming back with me” Bobbi says.

Skye picks up the bag that Bobbi just dropped “If you drop this you will die”

“What?”

Then Grant kicks her out of the plane.

“Holy shit” Skye says and punches Grant's arm "Why did you do that?"

"I was gentle!" He protests "She was coming back to her senses and she's tough. We really didn't want a fight"

“You think she’ll die?”

“If half the stories that I’ve heard are right, she’ll be just fine” Grant says as they both look down.

It takes a few seconds until they see the parachute opening.

“And there she is” Grant says.

“Bye, bye shield”

Grant presses another button on the side of the plane to close the ramp. “Ok, now where? A beach? A romantic cottage in the mountains?”

“Washington”

“What?”

“I got an idea”

“What’s in Washington?”

“Hydra” She says “Remember the story about the Devil guy in New York?” She explains when she sees Grant’s confused expression.

“You want to take them down? We give a crap now?”

“Of course not. But we need to find my father and for that we need resources. I know exactly who has them. Plus, they deserve it”

Grant walks back to the cockpit and Skye follows him. He sits.

“Grant, are you in?”

“Yeah. How do we do it?”

“We don’t need all the heads, just one. The Bloom, he doesn’t trust the others and he’s very… easy to manipulate”

“Why do I feel like I won’t like this?”

 

* * *

 

 

**PRESENT DAY**

 

She wakes up first, all sprawled over him. Maybe this is how happiness feels like. It’s the first time in her life that she feels like this.

Maybe it’s time for them to leave. For three months they tried to find her father and it was all for nothing. The guy was a ghost. Now they have enough money to leave and disappear for the rest of their lives. They could just do it, she could forget about everything. Grant is all the family she needs now.

His arms wrap around her naked body as he wakes up too “Good morning, gorgeous” He says with a smile.

“How did you sleep?” She says and kisses his chest.

“Like a damn baby”

She frowns “ I don’t think a baby would do what we did last night before bed?”

He chuckles “Good point”

“I don’t want to leave this bed”

“Me neither. Ever” He says and then Skye leans down to kiss him.

“We could do the romantic cottage in the mountains now”

“But your-“

“Grant” She stops him with a kiss “I want to tell you something” then she kisses him again.

“Something good?”

She smiles “Something really good”

But before she can speak someone knocks at their door.

“The hell” Grant says, all his senses going in high alert. 

“Who would-“

“I don’t know, Shield, Hydra?” He pushes her to the side “Get dressed”

He quickly puts on his boxers and pants, picks up his gun. It takes him like 5 seconds, while Skye is still struggling with her dress.

“Go to the bathroom!” He orders as the person outside keeps knocking.

It could be nothing. He tries to convince himself. It could be the old lady that owns the small hotel.

“I can help” She says.

“Hide!”

She doesn’t protest. She knows how he is, so she goes to the bathroom, but leaves the door slightly open. She doesn’t have a lot of control but she can use her powers if it comes to it.

Grant hides behind the door, places his hand on the knob and opens slowly.

“Somebody here?”

He steps inside only to feel a gun placed to his temple. “Oh, I don’t thin there’s a need for that”

Grant lowers his gun when he sees Cal.

“Sorry for dropping by like this”

“Cal?” Skye says, getting out of the bathroom.

That’s when he starts analyzing the picture. His daughter looks like a mess and then there’s Grant, shirtless, in a room that clearly has seen better days, with a lamp broken on the floor, a small crack on the wall next to the bed and the sheets… “Oh… Jesus”

“What are you doing here?” Skye asks.

Cal sits on a chair close to the door “I’m kind of asking myself the same thing now” He sighs “Could you just put on a shirt!”

“Oh.. yes sir” Grant says and goes to pick up his shirt from the floor.

Skye just observes the scene incredulously.

“My little girl…” Carl keeps saying.

“You know I’m 27”

Cal smiles “28, actually”

“What?”

“There’s a lot of things that I have to tell you. That’s why I’m here. The last time… I couldn’t, and I didn’t know if I should” He says, trying not to be distracted by the guy getting dressed or the state of the room.

“How did you find us? We’ve been trying to find you for months!”

“I didn’t find you” Cal starts “Your mother did”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Don't you just love cliffhangers? We're sooo close to the end. I hope you liked it. It's been a long time but this chapter is super long to compensate.... ansd the smut is back! Please tell me what you think. I'm always happy to read your comments.
> 
> NEXT: More awkward Grant vs Cal moments. Skye finds a lot of things about her past and they have to make a new plan. Grant gets ready to meet the mother in law.


	13. July 2nd, 1988

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Skye and Grant escape Shield once more, only to end up at Afterlife. Skye meets new people, the ones like her, including her mother, which leaves Grant feeling out of place in her new life.

“Are you ok? I’m… I’m really sorry. I know this could come as a-“ Cal stops when she looks at him. Now she’s sitting on the bed.

Grant is just standing in the middle of the room without knowing what to do.

“How?” Skye asks.

“I know this isn’t the best time or…place” Cal says, looking at Grant, then back to Skye “But neither was Puerto Rico, and I left… because I needed to contact her and speak to her first-“

“How is my mother alive?” She insists

“Uhm… I wasn’t lying about what Whitehall did to her”

“But she’s not dead”

“Part of her died, yes, a big part. Whitehall tore her apart, but your mother… her gift made it possible for me to fix it, in a way”

“Oh God” She buries her face in her hands, because it just sounds terrible and she can’t understand a word of what Cal is saying.

“I’ll explain everything. I swear”

“So this is about her power” She says, looking up at him again.

Cal nods “It’s not the same as yours, each gift is unique to each person. I spoke to her, she knows how to do this… she… that’s what she does, she helps people find their way and transition. She’ll explain everything you need to know”

“Ok, where is wonderful, mysterious woman, then?”

“I don’t know” Cal looks down “We’ll have to call for our ride and he’ll take us to her”

Skye sighs “What? What’s with all the mystery?”

“It was her decision, after… what happened. She runs a place called the Afterlife and-“

“Woah….” Grant finally says, lifting his hand to stop Cal “Sorry, sir, but this is just sounding weirder and creepier every second and now you just want us to go to this afterlife place?”

“Well, I want _my daughter_ to come”

“If I go anywhere Grant is coming with me” She says.

Cal looks at him again and Grant just hopes that if the guy has any powers they have nothing to do with killing people with one look.

“That could be arranged” Cal says “It’s just that this place is like a safe heaven, no one knows about it, that’s how she can make it safe”

“Wait, is this place full of more…?”

“Yes, there are many like you and your mother”

“And you?”

“No” He looks down “I was never like you. I’m just a man trying to put my family back together, you have to understand”

“And she’ll explain?”

“I promise. And I don’t break my promises”

She looks at Grant “We’ll go. I want to go”

“Who’s our ride?” Grant asks.

“Wait, wait” Skye stops him “We’ll go but I need… some time, and we have stuff to do here. We have a truck full of Hydra money, we’re not just going to leave it here”

“Where did you-“ Cal starts.

“We stole it after we made all the Hydra head kill each other” Skye says nonchalantly.

“Oh…” Cal says, raising his eyebrows at that.

“How do we find you?”

“Don’t find me, find Gordon”

“Who?” Grant asks.

“He has a connection with you, and with all the others like you. You just have to call him when you feel like you want to go, and he’ll take you there. You’ll see”

“And… will you be there?”

“If you want me to”

She nods and Cal smiles. “I understand that you need time to process it,” He adds. “I’ll leave now, but I’ll be waiting” then he hesitates, he has not tried to reach for her but it seems like he wants to, so Skye stands up and goes to him. She kisses him on the cheek, and it’s all kinds of awkward. Cal tenses. It’s like he doesn’t want to move, afraid that he’ll scare her off.

But he’s still smiling.

“Bye” she says softly and Cal responds in the same way, leaving the room.

She closes the door behind him and then leans against it, sighing deeply.

“What are we going to do?”

“You said that you had a guy…”

“Not about the money, Skye”

She takes a moment, and avoids he eyes when she speaks “This can’t be true”

“Are you ok?”

“I don’t know”

“You mother is alive though, that’s good”

“I don’t know, Grant, is it?” She looks at him “I don’t even know if Cal _is_ _good._ And what’s with all this mystery? That he had to go and find her and ask permission to tell me that she was alive?”

“Maybe you should just listen the whole story”

“You’re coming with me, right?”

“Always”

“I think that this is something that I have to do”

He approaches her, grabs her arms to pull her for a hug “I’ll be with you every step of the way, alright?”

She nods, burying her face against his chest.

“Even though your father probably wants to kill me now”

She chuckles at that.

 

* * *

 

“You’re too quiet” He says, poking at her side. Skye just looks at him. After leaving their car with Grant’s contact, they decided to go grab something to eat, but Skye has not even touched her salad.

“I’m not really hungry” She says

“Do you want to go now?”

“With my mother?”

"Oh… I was actually talking about leaving this place”

She smiles “Sorry, I was wondering how it works, do I have to say Gordon three times in front of a mirror or something?”

“Maybe he’ll sense it, when you really want to go”

She frowns “Do you believe in all this mystic mumbo jumbo, now?”

“I believe in what I see” He says, looking at her “And I hadn’t seen anything quite like you before”

“You know how to say all the right things to a lady, don’t you?”

“Just to my lady” He says, grabbing her hand and kissing it.

Skye chuckles “Your lady? Things are getting pretty serious here. I mean, after all you’re meeting my mother now”

His expression changes suddenly, which is not a good sign.

“Ok, there’s no need for that tragedy face” She teases, but Grant looks… worried?

“We’re not alone” He says, taking his wallet and leaving money to pay for their food on the table.

She just follows him. Grant can get pretty serious when he’s on full spy mode. He holds her hand tighs, gets her out of the cafeteria, trying to blend in. She didn’t even get to see whom he saw back there but Grant knows what he does.

“Damn it” He mumbles, trying to walk faster.

That’s when someone else walks out of a store, joining them, wrapping his arm around Skye.

“You look lovely, sweetheart, definitely no need for a nano mask today, right?”

“You don’t want a mess, Hunter” Grant Warns him. “And please, move your arm or you’ll loose it”

“Sorry mate. I know you’re pissed, but look, I didn’t kiss her. She kissed me” He lets go off Skye and smiles “A really nice kiss, may I say?”

Skye smiles “Thanks”

Grant sighs.

“Look, I know that you know that I’m not alone. I’m pretty sure you already saw the others; there’s more back up coming. So it’ll be my genuine pleasure to take you in nice and calm, although if you want a fight it’ll also be my pleasure, because… well, you threw my wife out of a bloody plane and I’m not happy about that”

“Ok, first, we gave her a parachute. We told her, explicitly that we didn’t-“ Grant starts as they keep walking. Lance guides them to the nearest alley. Grant knows procedure, he’s making them go somewhere for extraction.

“Oh, that’s nice, you gave her a parachute!”

Skye nods “I made sure she was holding it”

“Are you for real?”

“Isn’t she your ex wife?” Grant asks. He looks down at Skye and she just reads it in his expression. They need a plan.

Hunter rolls his eyes “We’re working on it” he sighs pushes them to the alley. “You’re lucky she’s fine, or I would be hunting both of your arses down” He takes out his gun and a couple of guys join them in the alley. “We’re ready for the pod”

“I’ve got nothing” Grant mumbles, clenching his fists an readying himself for a fight.

But then Skye grabs his hand. “I’ve got something” She looks at Hunter “Gordon! If you hear this, this might be just the time to show up”

“Skye-“ Grant starts, not sounding so convinced.

“What? Who are you talking to?”

“Hello?” She repeats, and just before she can speak again, a blue light strikes on the floor before them followed by a bright blast and some sort of dome made of pure energy, with a man inside.

He…. Looks? At them? They guy has no eyes, but he _sees_ them ad smiles. The Shield agents barely have time to react before the man places his hand on Skye’s shoulder.

Then it’s like her head is exploding, her ears buzzing and she just holds onto Grant, a bit scared, especially about opening her eyes and loosing him.

It’s so quick though. They’re now in a room, Grant still by her side and he seems as confused as she is.

“It’s always harder the first time, you’ll be just fine” The man says “I’m Gordon, I believe you called for me?”

“What the hell!” She takes a deep breath, focusing on Gordon and the room around them. It’s a weird sensation of dizziness, because it fades quickly but she still feels her legs a bit shaky. “What-… did you take us out of there?”

He nods “It takes some getting used to… out gifts, even understanding the other’s gifts” then he disappears in a small blue blast, popping up in the opposite corner of the room. Grant first instinct is to move in front of Skye in a protective manner.

“Oh, don’t worry. You are safe in here” He grabs a glass and pours water into it “Water?” He offers them.

“How can you even-“ Grant starts, a bit unsure.

“See?” Gordon chuckles “Oh, I don’t. It’s a lot more complicated than that” He starts drinking the water.

“Come on, let them gather themselves”

There’s someone else in the room, a blond guy.

Gordon smiles “He’s Lincoln, he’s your´ transitioner, and he’ll answer all your questions while you wait”

“Wait?- no, no!” Skye says but then Gordon puffs out of the room.

“Sorry, he likes the drama” Lincoln says, “You must be Skye” He offers his hand.

“And I’m Grant” He shakes Lincoln’s hand first.

“Hello” Lincoln smiles “I… was told to be here with you so you don’t feel like we’re holding you captive or something”

Grant frowns and Skye speaks “It does feel like you’re holding us here a little bit”

Lincoln chuckles “We have… some rules, your situation is kind of an exception to those rules, so we’re trying to be discrete about it, for the whole community”

“So, no one knows that we’re here?” Grant asks.

“Just a few people. Our leader was very clear about that, only the people she trusts know about it, at least for know”

“Your leader?”

“Our guide” Lincoln corrects himself “She’s the one that you’re expecting to see”

Skye looks at Grant and he immediately grabs her hand.

“Where are we?” He asks

“Well, I’m afraid I’m not very sure about that answer, my best guess is somewhere in Asia” Lincoln says

“What?! And you want us to be ok with that answer?”

“Well, the door is open…” Lincoln points at the door.

“Grant…”

“What? If you want to go, we’ll go. We can’t be in Asia”

“Calm down” she says and places one hand on his chest “They did save us from Shield”

“We could have handled Shield” He sighs.

That’s when they hear someone knocking on the door, and then she opens.

Skye doesn’t say a word, but it’s a little hard to believe this time.

“Hi. I’m sorry, I came as soon as Gordon told me about your arrival”

Still silence, Grant just looks at Skye, but he must be wondering the same thing as she is.

“Lincoln, could you wait outside for a moment?” She asks and Lincoln nods, leaving the room and closing the door behind him. The woman takes one step “Hi” She repeats “My name is Jiaying, I was waiting for you. I help around here, to guide others like you”

And more silence. Skye is still studying her, afraid to move or say anything.

“Skye?” Jiaying prompts her “Are you feeling all right?”

“I just want you to be straight with me and tell me, because I feel like I can’t ask it”

Jiaying looks down, takes another step “But you know it already, don’t you?” she takes a deep breath “What I feel is that I can’t look you in the eye and tell you, because we failed you, and he took you-“

“Mom?” Skye swallows and then Jiaying looks at her again, with a few tears in her eyes.

“Yes”

Grant places his hand on Skye’s back, encouraging her to reach for her mother.

She only gets a little closer.

“I’m sorry” Jiaying says

Skye shakes her head “No… it wasn’t you, it was Whitehall and Hydra. It wasn’t-“

That’s when Jiaying takes the final step and pulls her in her arms. Skye holds onto her so tight, closes her eyes and sobs.

“I’m sorry” Jiaying repeats. “I’m make up for all those years, I swear”

When they finally separate Grant speaks “I’m going to give you a moment, okay?”

Skye looks at him “Wait…”

He stops

“He’s… Grant, he came with me. He’s _with_ me” Skye says… to her mother. It’s such a weird feeling to think about someone as her mother, and the fact that she’s right in front of her.

“Nice to meet you, Grant”

“Ma’am” He nods and then leaves the room. He meets Lincoln outside.

“Hi?” Grant says. “Are you waiting for…”

“You, actually. If you can follow me, we have something to discuss”

 

* * *

 

 “How?” Skye asks, “I have… so many questions. I don’t know exactly what Whitehall did to you, but I have a pretty good idea” She sobs and looks down “and you look so young”

Jiaying takes her hand and guides her to the nearest couch “Our people believe that every gift we’re given is different because it has a purpose. The use we give to those gifts are supposed to fill a necessity”

“Well, mine is more like a curse… it’s just, destruction…”

“A lot of people fell like that at first, even I did for a while, I didn’t… understand it, I hurt people by accident, but then I figured it out, I was meant to guide, to be there generation after generation so they could understand what their gifts. Regeneration. It helps with age, it helps with wounds… but I’ll forever carry the scars to remember that night”

Skye looks at her and the healed cuts on her face. “He was a monster, and he raised a monster”

“This is not a place to judge mistakes. This is a place for opportunities, and learning. We’re all capable of beauty and greatness” She says and reaches for a loose strand of hair and places it behind Skye’s ear. “That’s the whole reason why I came here. And I thought, that maybe if I couldn’t find my baby… I could help others find themselves” She says, her voice breaking a bit and Skye grabs her hand.

“I wondered… so many nights, for so long, if maybe you could be alive, if you were looking-“

“We were ruthless, we did everything we could, for years and years we… did horrible things trying to find you, to find Whitehall, to hurt them. Until one day I woke up and I realized what we had turned into. Your father was full of hate and rage and we wouldn’t stop at anything-

“But we’re together now” Skye says, her voice breaking too.

“You’re also hurting. I’ve seen the bruises in your arms”

“Oh, it’s… it’s fine, it’s healing” She tries to hide her arms from her mother, pushing down her sleeves.

“You need proper care. Whatever they did to you in…” she sighs, “They thought they were dealing with human biology, we’re a lot more than that. You need treatment. Your lymphatic and circulatory-“

“No, no, no… I don’t want more doctors. I have so many things to ask you…”

Jiaying smiles at that and strokes Skye’s face softly “I’ll be there myself, every step of the way, okay? I’m your mother but I’m also in charge of this place and making sure that you’re healthy and fully recovered”

“That’s kind of your job as my mom too,” Skye says, making her mother chuckle.

“Yes, it is” She stands “But we also have some procedures. It’ll make you feel a lot better” She offers Skye her hand and she grabs it, following Jiaying out of the room. “Usually your transitioner should take care of this, but this is a very special exception”

Skye smiles. “Can I ask you something?”

“Of course, whatever you need to know”

“It’s kind of stupid” She looks down, as they walk, never letting go off her mother’s hand. “But I don’t even know when I was born”

Jiaying stops and turns to face her “It’s not stupid. It was certainly the best day of my life. July 2nd, 1888. I remember every detail about that night…”

 

* * *

 

 

“How are you feeling?”

Skye sighs, opening her eyes, recognizing the voice. It still fills her with a new emotion, something nice and warm and peaceful  “I feel like I can’t move” She’s on a bed, her whole boddy covered in needles.

Yeah, more needles... that part is not that peaceful.

Jiaying strokes her hair softly “You’ll feel much better after this. Imagine that thousands of years of evolution took place, all at once, in your body. That’s what the mist does. We all carry the genetic code, but it has to be activated. Then it changes every single cell of your body. These treatments help you adapt, ease the pain”

Skye frowns, still a bit confused “Did I fall sleep?”

“You’ve been in and out. We usually start this process after terrigenesis, that’s what it’s called. The time you spent without proper care put a huge strain on your body. After this maybe you’ll feel a little weak but much better”

“Jiaying, can I come in?” Lincoln asks, outside, knocking on the door.

“Yes” She lets him “What’s going on?”

“Uhm… we have a bit of a… complication” He says once he’s inside.

Then it hits Skye “Wait. For how long have I been in and out?” She tries to move but again, she can’t. “Where’s Grant?”

Jiaying looks at Lincoln and he nods. “I’m sorry” He says.

“It’s ok” Jiaying places her hand on Skye’s arm “Take it easy. I’ll talk to him. I understand he must have a lot of questions too. We’re not used to guests that are not like us”

“I’ll finish here” Lincoln offers and Jiaying nods.

“He can be-“ Skye warns her.

Jiaying smiles “Don’t worry. I was used to your father” She smiles “I’ll be back soon”

 

* * *

 

He kicks the damn chair again. If that asshole comes back without Skye now they’ll have a problem. The only reason why he hasn’t torn this place apart it’s because it’s her mother’s, andSkye seemed really happy to be here.

“Hello, Grant”

Speaking of the devil. He takes a deep breath, trying to calm down.

“Where’s- sorry, I know this is a huge deal for you and here, but I’ve been locked in here the whole day, and we don’t even know where we are. I just… want to see Skye”

“I understand” She says “She’s undergoing treatment, for her injuries. We didn’t anticipate how… drained and hurt her body was. That’s why it took so long”

“What kind of treatment? Where’s she?” He walks to the door.

“I believe you spoke to Gordon?”

Grant stops “And that’s why I need to find her”

“I didn’t create the rules”

“But you’re in charge. You can change them”

“I can only let my daughter make her decision. She needs the help that we can provide here. I’ll show you the whole place if you want to”

Grant sits on the bed, sighs again, shakes his head “We’ve been through hell together”

“I see that you care deeply about her. I value that, and I want you to see with your own eyes what we can do here. I would never do something that could hurt her”

“You’re her mother” He looks at her “it’s out of the question, I suppose”

She offers her hand "Come with me. I'll take you to her"

 

* * *

 

“I’m ready” Skye says and then Lincoln comes back inside. She’s already changed back into her clothes.

“So, how are you feeling?”

“Uhm, normal? I guess?” She says and rubs her forearms “the pain’s gone. That’s good”

“You’ll see that you can make real progress in here”

“Where’s _in here_ , anyway?”

“I told you, I don’t know, nobody does. Gordon is the only one that has contact with the outside. He’s the only one allowed to go out”

“So you live here?”

“Oh, well. We do go out but he takes care of that. I’m from Cincinnati, actually. But I come here when I’m needed. This is not a permanent place, more like a waiting station. The name is Lai Shi, it doesn’t have a translation” He says and moves to the balcony door “but it would be something like Afterlife. It’s fitting” He says, opening the doors and revealing the beautiful view of mountains and green valleys outside.

She joins him “This is impressive”

“It’s a nice, peaceful” He smiles “Wanna take a look around?”

 

* * *

 

“Well, they don’t seem happy” Grant says as they walk and the people keep staring at him.

“Because they don’t know you, and you’re not-“

“Like you?”

“No. Because you’ve not been through the process. You see, most of them, here, haven’t even received their gifts; most of them won’t be chosen. They’re descendants, yes. But they have to wait, be prepared and cultured should they be selected. Things have been done in a certain way here, for generations but very few are chosen after a long, long process. With Skye here, and your presence… it must be raising a lot of questions” Jiaying answers.

“She cut the line” Grant says “Are they jealous?”

“Maybe. The circumstances of her transformation are exceptional too. No one had turned in a Kree temple, with a diviner... in hundreds of years”

“You know she was forced into it, right? She didn’t want it”

“I know, but it can’t be reversed. We can only help her adapt to it, support her. I'm sure that's what you want too” She says, then smiles when she sees Skye walking with Lincoln “It seems like she’s already up”

Grant clenches his jaw.

Then Skye sees them almost runs to her mother, she smiles shyly.

“Hey” She says, and then looks at Grant.

“Grant is going to join us for dinner” Jiaying says.

“That’s Great!” Her smile grows even wider. He has not seen her this happy in so long.

“Hi” Lincoln joins them “I was just showing her around, explaining how this place works”

“Thank you, Lincoln. I’ll take it from here” Jiaying says.

“Bye” Lincoln says, touching Skye’s arm, and Grant’s gaze follows every single motion he makes, the way he smiles at her and she smiles back.

At first he thought he could be jealous, but now it’s like he’s seeing it clearer. It just feels… natural. She’s happy, and they’re all like her. It’s like she’s in her element and he’s the one out of place.

“This place is beautiful” Skye says as they follow Jiaying. She reaches for Grant’s hand. “Lincoln was just telling me a bit of our history, and how you came here and became a guide for everyone. It’s amazing”

“It’s safe, that’s all I intended it to be. Being a secret helps with that. I hope you don’t feel too uncomfortable about it”

“It’s fine!” Skye says before Grant can even speak.

“We have to protect our secret for the sake of our community. I was just telling Grant that people are starting to speculate about what your presence here means”

“It’s ok” Skye repeats “Lincoln explained it to me, I get it”

“Meanwhile, we’ll be as careful as possible. I still have to explain it, especially to the elders, but I'm sure it won't be an issue. Our only interest here is to help as much people as we can”

They arrive to one of the main buildings and then Jiaying guides them inside.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, that's it! Only 2 chapters left! 
> 
> UP NEXT: Cal arrives. Skye learns more about her powers but faces a very hard decision.
> 
> Now let me know your thoughts!!! will this be a happy ending for Grant and Skye or a separation is coming? ohh... suspense...


	14. Moving mountains

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Skye starts training with her mother and Grant realizes that her place is with her people. Cal arrives to the afterlife while Skye learns that maybe she can't have everything she's ever wanted.

They get just a few seconds alone, when Jiaying leaves to speak with the man that will bring their dinner.

“We need to talk”

“About what?”

“About this place, the rules-“

Skye rolls her eyes “I know, it’s a little hard to get used to it but-“

“No, Skye!”

“Hey!” Jiaying comes back, joining them on the table “I have to say, Grant. I’m sorry about leaving you in that room the whole day but I had so many things in my head, and, we’re trying not to draw more attention than it’s absolutely necessary. I hope you understand”

“It’s been a crazy day, and now we’re having dinner like… normal people” Skye says

Jiaying chuckles at that “I do want you to feel normal”

“Yeah, like any other girl that can bring down buildings”

“Tomorrow we’ll work on that” Jiaying says and then looks at Grant before she continues “I’ve chosen to be your guide should you decide to stay here. It could take some time but you would learn that there’s no reason to be afraid of what you can do. You can learn how to control it”

“Sounds like a pretty sweet deal” Grant says.

“Wait, wait” Skye says “I wanted to ask you… I spoke to Cal before we got here, and I thought that he would be here”

“I know. I’m handling it. Your father can be a handful sometimes, but we’ll bring him”

“Yeah, he’s quite something” Skye jokes.

“He actually talked to me about you” Jiaying says to Grant “In his words: _Our daughter is seeing a boy, I don’t know what to think about that. But he would kill a man for her, and I respect that_ ”

Skye laughs at that “That sounds so like Cal” she grabs Grant’s hand.

“And he’s not wrong” Grant adds.

“Uhm-“ Skye interrupts him “Well, yeah… we’ve been through pretty crazy stuff. We actually met when I was planning to… uhm, do… something to… escape Whitehall”

Grant frowns.

“I heard you were one of them, an agent” Jiaying.

“I never really cared about that. I did as I was told, but I didn’t know what was like to actually want something until…” He looks at Skye, and she’s actually blushing. It’s like seeing a different person.

Jiaying reaches for his arm, which makes him turn back to her “That sounds like something really special. I’m glad to hear it”

Skye smiles, taken aback by the whole domesticity of it. They bring their dinner and Grant is on one side, her mother at the other. It hurts when she sees the scars on her face. She wonders how things could have been if Whitehall hadn’t ruined her family. She has not asked more about Cal but what she infers is that they’re no longer together. Jiaying has a life here, the people adore her and Cal… well, he’s Cal. But, maybe, they could have been happy.

She looks at Grant. He’s doing his best but she knows that he’s a bit uncomfortable. It’s hard for him to trust new people.

 

* * *

 

“What the hell!” Cal growls, standing up.

“I was told to bring you here until Jiaying can see you” Gordon replies.

“She’s here. My Daisy… she’s here, isn’t she? Or she wouldn’t have send you for me”

“You’ll have to wait in here”

“Come on, Gordo”

“I’ll bring you food and-“

“Food? For how long are you going to keep me in here?”

“I’m sorry”

“Wait!!!” Cal yells, but Gordon disappears. He punches the nearest table, yelling in frustration.

 

* * *

 

“Ok, you already know your room, and this is Skye’s” Lincoln says.

“We actually-“

“Thanks, Lincoln!” Skye says “See you tomorrow?”

He nods “Whatever you need, you know where to find me. It’s crucial that you eat and rest properly before you start your process”

“Okay” She says, smiling back at him, before he finally goes. He pats Grant in the arm and he answers with a nod.

Skye speaks again “Stop it with the face”

“The face?”

She grabs his arm and pulls him inside the room “You don’t have to go back to your room if you don’t want to”

“Then why didn’t you tell him that we don’t need another room?”

“I- wait, is there something wrong? Because I’m starting to sense that you’re holding something”

“Am I? What about you? You’re acting like you’re a different person, like you’re… ashamed of us”

“What are you even talking about? I told my mom that we were together the moment I met her”

“Not our relationship, just us, what we are, what we have done…”

“Well, maybe I want to move on. This is our chance to have a bit of normal, look at this place, and this people…”

“This is what you call normal?” He says, but quickly corrects himself “Wait, I didn’t mean it like that” Grant says.

She crosses her arms “Maybe what’s so different is that I never felt this happy. I thought you wanted to be with me in this, or maybe we’re just a bunch of freaks for you”

“No, no… please, Skye. It’s just that you’re so… “ He looks down and sighs “I’m sorry”

“I met my mother today, I know when I was born, you know how crazy that is?” He looks up again and she continues, “I know what you want to say. You want me to be careful; you want me to think this through, but I never imagined that something like this would happen, I don’t want to be afraid of it”

“And I just want you to be happy”

“I am. I have everything I’ve ever wanted right here with me”

“I see. I’m sorry. I don’t want to ruin that for you”

She grabs his hand again “Come on, let’s just go to bed”

“You sure you want me here?”

She pulls him closer, kisses his lips softly. “I’m sorry for abandoning you today. That’s on me”

“It’s fine”

“And you know that I always want you in my bed” She smiles at him, her hands sliding up his back “Although, maybe we should just sleep, I’m really tired and I have to be up early tomorrow” She says, but there’s also the fact that if they have sex right now she might end up causing earthquakes at her mother’s house and she doesn’t want people asking even more questions.

Grant nods

“Baby, is that ok?” She insists.

“I’m tired too,” He says and Skye starts removing her clothes until she’s in her underwear. It hits him that they’ve never actually slept together… like this, just sleeping. Skye looks so tired and she’s just snuggling under the sheets waiting for him. He’s not really in the mood either. There are a lot of things going through his head right now.

He joins her and Skye wraps his arms around her body. He just lets her.

“You wanted to tell me something before dinner?”

He sighs, burying his nose against her hair, inhaling her sweet scent and kissing the top of her head.

“It was nothing. Go to sleep”

“This is nice,” She says, snuggling closer to him. “We should try it more often”

 

* * *

 

The next morning Skye is up before him, which is odd. He clears his throat, stretches out.

“Good morning, handsome” She smiles and then throws something at him. He notices that she’s wearing new clothes, just jeans and a sweater; she still looks amazing, smiling, almost glowing. “They gave us clothes, so… should I wait for you? We can have breakfast together”

He nods “Give me 5 minutes”

Grant takes a quick shower, tries to organize his ideas. He knows the rules, he knows that he can’t stay here and it’s just a matter of time before he has to leave. He doubts that they’ll let him know where this place is. He doubts that Skye will ever want to leave. She said it herself; she has everything she’s ever wanted now. He wouldn’t ask her to give it up for him, and these people… they’re good, her mother is nice, this could be good for her.

She knocks on the door “Hey! I would ask if you need help in there but we know how that will end”

“I’ll be out in a minute!” He says.

He’s out in a minute.

Skye actually bites her lip when she sees him “I like the scruff” She says, pulling him by his t-shirt and then wrapping her arms around his neck.

“Maybe we should just skip breakfast” Grant leans down, going for her neck, feeling Skye’s nails on his scalp as he brushes his lips against her flesh, making her sigh deeply.

“Tempting” She says, grabbing a fistful of his hair and pulling his head back.

He stares, wondering if he can live without her, without her lips and her eyes and her body in his arms. He just kisses her hard, stealing all the breath out of her lungs, pushing his tongue inside her mouth. Skye moans, kisses him back just as deep and demanding.

“It’s getting late” She says, smiling.

Grant nods “Sorry”

She kisses him again, just a quick peck “Never be sorry about that” She grabs his hand to pull him out of the room.

The moment she opens they meet Lincoln on the other side.

“Oh… sorry to interrupt” Lincoln says, “I was about to…”

“We’re ready! you're not... nothing....” Skye starts, pulling Grant with her “Is my mother going to join us?”

“She had something to deal with, but she’ll join you later”

 

* * *

 

 

“Can he come with us?” Skye ask Jiaying once they meet her outside the main house.

“I think it’s better if you go alone” Grant says, “Your mother will help you, and you don’t have to be afraid of hurting me, you can just… let go” Grant says.

Skye looks at her mother, then back at Grant “You sure?”

“He has not seen the best view that this place has to offer yet” Lincoln says, trying to cut the awkward silence “I can take you there” he offers.

“That sounds good” Grant says. “I’ll be waiting” he adds and kisses Skye’s cheek. Jiaying smiles at him and then they leave.

Grant sighs, Lincoln pats his back and he has to stop himself from punching the guy. Nothing personal, he just wants to punch something.

“I’ve got beers. I was not lying about the place with the view, wanna go? Might take your mind off things for a little while”

And that makes him feel a little bad, but he still wants to punch him “Alright”

 

* * *

 

 

“Is everything okay with your boyfriend?” Jiaying asks.

That’s a new word, even though Grant is kind of her boyfriend, but she never really thought about it, he’s like… her everything, her partner, her man, the guy she loves. Because she loves him… yeah he’s her boyfriend. It just sounds so normal; she never really had a boyfriend before.

“Skye?”

“Oh… yeah, it’s difficult for him I guess. I never trusted anyone, and he never trusted anyone, and when we met… it took us a good amount of time to see that we trusted each other, but it was just us. I thought it was going to be just us. And here… everything here is great, not so much out there”

“I see”

“He needs some time to adapt”

She notices that Jiaying avoids her eyes for a moment, but he tries to keep talking “Are you in love?”

Skye smiles almost involuntarily “Yeah”

“I’m happy to be a witness of that” Her mother says, “I never pictured meeting you at this age, with someone by your side, but I’m happy to see you in love, with a man that looks at you in the same way you look at him. Happiness is everything I would ever wish for you”

Skye leans against her mother and she places an arm around her shoulder “I’m happy. I don’t think I ever was as happy as I’m right now”

“He’s also quite handsome” Jiaying says.

Skye laughs, “It’s annoying”

Jiaying laughs too “Are you ready to start your training?”

“Yeah. If I can’t get rid of it I might as well learn how to stop it from destroying everything” She says “There were these scientist at Shield that tried to help, I was getting there, Grant helped me too”

“Have you tried something?”

“Yeah with Grant we- uhm… practiced… stuff”

Jiaying looks at her confused.

“You know, we tried things, to learn how it works… just… it doesn’t matter”

“Okay… “ Jiaying says “We’re going to find out now”

 

* * *

 

“You were right. This is nice” Grant says, sitting on the floor next to Lincoln. He hands him a beer.

“Best view in the house,” Lincoln says, taking a sip of his beer.

“I can’t help but get that feeling that this could be too good to be true, you know?”

“Have you talked to Skye yet?”

“She’s happy here. I think this is the best thing for her, to stay here”

“That’s a decision that she has to make by herself”

“We’re running away, we’re being hunted. She can be safe here, learn about what she can do, stay with her family”

“Her father is here now,” Lincoln says and Grant looks at him.

“He probably doesn’t want to see me” Grant jokes “unless it’s to kill me

 

* * *

 

“What is this place anyway? Where are we? Are we in China?” Skye asks, maybe she’s speaking to fast as she takes in the place, the mountains, the colors, even the air, it feels so… different.

“It’s… a safe heaven. Being here, being a secret is what has kept us safe from the outside world. I’m sorry, but we have some rules and I’ve already broken quite a few with-“

“No, no, no. I understand. I was just curious”

Jiaying smiles and finally stops walking “I only want to wrap my arms around you all the time. Tell everyone that you’re my daughter. But I’m their leader, having such a responsibility carries weight, and trust is a very important part of it. They know that a mother would do anything for her child, and that could cloud anyone’s judgment. We have learned that the hard way. I know that you didn’t choose it, but it’ll take some time for the others to understand that”

“I get it, they might say that you had something to do with it”

Jiaying nods “Just a small portion of the people you see here have receive their gifts. There has to be some… preparation, evaluation and training after the transformation” she turns, facing the valley, a big snowy mountain far away.

Skye turns too “this is amazing” she says.

“It’s only the two of us here. Do you know what you can do?”

“Yeah. I make things shake, I destroy small rooms…”

Jiaying laughs, “it’s a lot more than that”

“They studied me, at shield" She says and notices the uncomfortable expression on her mother's face "I mean they explained a theory that everything is already vibrating or something”

Her mother reaches down for a small rock “They’re not wrong” she gives the rock to Skye “everything is already moving, even things that are not alive, like this rock. You just need to hear it”

“You want me to hear the rock? I mean I’ve tried with people, hearts, life itself is-“

Jiaying covers Skye’s hand with hers, making her close her fingers around the rock. “Feel it” She cuts in “Close your eyes and tell me what you hear”

 

* * *

 

He doesn’t see her way until the afternoon, walking with her mother, smiling just like that morning.

“How did it go?” Lincoln asks when they meet them.

"Well, I moved a mountain” Skye says excitedly.

“Wow… that’s… good” Grant says.

“Still not sure about that, but it felt incredible”

“Maybe you could join us for the next part” Jiaying tells Grant, he nods.

“I’m going to grab you guys something to eat later” Lincoln says “Have fun with the rest of your training” he says and leaves.

Grant follows the two women back inside the main building.

“Before we go there’s something that I need to tell you” Jiaying starts “WE already have your father here”

“Cal is here?” Skye says.

“We have not let him out yet, but if you wish to see him we could go there”

“You locked him up?” Skye asks.

Jiaying looks down and nods “It was my decision, and I didn’t want to overwhelm you, once he’s calmed down we’ll let him out in the house”

“He’ll probably be better when he sees me”

Grant grabs her hand and then they follow Jiaying to Cal’s room. She appreciates the fact that Grant knows when to remind her that he’s here. It still bothers her that he’s too quiet but maybe they’ll have some time after her training so she can push on the subject.

Jiaying knocks on a door.

“Is that you, Gordo, sweetie?” They hear from the inside “What am I saying, you would just puff in and out of here before I can-“

He shuts up when Jiaying opens the door.

“Oh…” He stands up “Hi”

“Hello” Skye says, “I’m glad that you’re here”

Cal smiles he almost looks… not like a totally crazy person “I know, I know. It’s a family reunion. Even…” he rolls his eyes and points at Grant “I was just telling your mother this morning that we should have dinner, something small and special… I have so many ideas”

“That sounds great” Skye says, then she looks at her mother and she nods. “We could-” she looks at Jiaying and Grant "Can I just get a moment with him?"

"Of course" Her mother replies and she leaves with Grant, closing the door behind Skye.

"Hey" She says again, approaching Cal "I'm really looking forward to dinner"

“Wow…I know!! best day ever!” Cal exclaims, “Gosh, I have so many things to get ready. Maybe Lincoln will help me. He's quite a nice boy, you know he's a doctor?”

Skye laughs "Yeah, he's nice. But I thought you loved Grant"

"Ugh... He's alright, I guess. If that's what you want" Cal complains.

"Yeah, that's what I want. Thank you, for inviting him to our family dinner" She says, smiling at Cal which makes him smile too. It's like he can switch his mood in a second.

"Of course"

Skye nods “We'll be there. You just have to do something for me”

"Oh... yeah, sure. Whatever you need"

"Just... be cool, ok? we don't need to draw more attention... dad"

Cal freezes for a second, it almost looks like he’s about to cry, “Yeah, of course… cool as a cucumber. I promise. I know the rules. I’ll be good, I'll do anything... maybe she'll make an exception, now that you have... your... boyfriend, and we could-”

She frowns "Wait, wait, wait. exception? What are you talking about?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! It's just one episode left guys! Skye has to make one big final decision, maybe someone else will make it for her, who knows?? Just let me see your thoughts. I kind of don't want it to end but I promise there will be some good stuff coming. Thank you for sticking around!!


	15. Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Skye has to make her final decision when she finds out that Grant can't stay at Afterlife. She decides to stay where she belongs.

She storms inside his room. It’s been a while since he’s seen something like that, the fiery, defying expression on her eyes.

“I know why you’ve been so damn quiet”

“You know”

“Who told you?”

“Lincoln and Gordon spoke to me when we arrived”

“And it didn’t occur to you that maybe I might want to know that they won’t let you stay here?”

“I tried to tell you!”

“When!”

“Before dinner with your mom”

She opens her mouth and then closes it again before she finally speaks “Ok, you did try to tell me. Damn it, Grant!”

“I didn’t-“

“Hey! I asked you again before we went to sleep that night! I’m back to being right and you’re back to being a dramatic asshole!”

He sighs, “I was trying to avoid this, to put you in this situation”

“What situation? I though we were a team, like maybe we should try to find a solution?” She moves closer to him.

“We could never be a team. I’m nothing like you, or your mom, or anyone in here”

“So that’s what this is all about? You’re feeling insecure?”

“I’m being honest”

“Fuck you, Ward,” She says. Sitting on the bed “I’m really not up for this kind of drama”

“Then let’s work together to find a solution like you want. You have to stay here, and I have to go" 

“What?” She looks up at him. She clearly got that killer look from her father. He recognizes it now.

“You shouldn’t leave”

“Oh, right, there’s probably no middle ground in this”

“And I don’t want to stay”

She has no answer to that.

Grant keeps going “this is where you belong and I’m totally in over my head here”

“Are you kidding me right now?”

“No. I think you made a lot of plans in your head, but you didn’t bother to ask what I was thinking. Maybe I just don’t fit in with this new you that wouldn’t kill a fly”

She looks down “That’s… I get it. Now that I’m actually trying to be better you’re just not having it, are you?” She stands up again “You just want me as twisted and damaged-“

“As me?” He asks.

“Yeah” She nods, standing even closer to him. “That’s why we worked, because we were the same, and we were willing to do anything to get what we wanted but-”

“Seems like you already got everything you wanted here. You said it yourself”

He sees her clenching her jaw. She’s not crying, she just looks so fucking mad. Grant turns to leave. He needs to leave.

It takes her a moment, but she finally speaks “Where are you going?”

“We’re back were we started. Your home, your room” He says.

“That wasn’t my home back then” She says and goes to the door, pushing him to the side on her way out “You’re a fucking asshole, Ward”

 

* * *

 

 

She’s not hoping that he’ll show up for dinner. Maybe he asked Gordon to take him back to the civilization or something, because he’s dumb like that.

“Hey!”

She looks at her mother. “Sorry…”

“Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, just… a little overwhelmed here, mom and dad… having dinner like a family” Skye smiles.

“I thought that Grant was joining us”

Skye clears her throat and avoids Jiaying’s gaze “He’s not joining us today”

The woman grabs her arm supportively, but she doesn’t push it “Cal is waiting. He insisted that he wanted to make all the arrangements himself”

“He’s probably going to over do it”

Jiaying laughs “Yeah, it’s almost like the Cal I met so long ago”

They arrive at the dinning room, where Cal is waiting for them with a bouquet of daisies in his hand. He looks all cleaned up and the table is set for four.

“You’re here!” Cal says, “You two look beautiful tonight” He gives Skye the flowers.

“Daisies” She says as Cal pulls the chair for her.

“Yeah, like you…”

He looks at Jiaying and then pulls the chair for her too. Skye is just staring at them, confusing, and then she looks at the flowers.

“Is that my-”

“That’s the name we gave you when you were born. Daisy”

“Our little Daisy” Call adds “Look at you now, you’re even more than I imagined, and I imagined you perfect” He reaches for her arm and Skye lets him. This is nice, it’s not to hard for her to imagine that she got to live another life where every dinner was like this, and her parents were with her.

But then she looks at the empty seat next to her.

“I know that Skye was not the name that… that man gave you. I figured that you chose Skye for a reason, so I didn’t want to push it” Jiaying says.

“What’s my last name?”

“Johnson” Cal says.

“Daisy Johnson” She repeats and smiles “that’s crazy…” She smiles at them, she feels like she wants to star crying, “Thank you for the flowers, they’re beautiful” She tells Cal.

“Anything for my baby” Cal says “I’m just glad that we’re here” He grabs both Skye’s and Jiaying’s hands “Together at last, and there’s so much food. Seriously, I hope you’re hungry. I got different options because I really don’t know your favorite food, but we’ll get there, right?”

Skye chuckles at that “It’s okay. Anything is okay, really”

“And where is your boyfriend?” Cal asks and Skye falls silent so her mother tries to keep the conversation flowing.

“Cal, you should tell her the story about the night she was born, she doesn’t know that one yet”

He gets immediately distracted and smiles, grabbing the bottle of wine and pouring the liquid in their glasses as he starts telling the story “Oh… that’s a great story!. It was a gorgeous summer night. Beautiful, big moon in the sky...” He looks at Jiaying ”You actually cleaned before you told me, remember?”

Jiaying nods and Cal continues “You see, there was only one car in the village and we didn't own it. So I had to negotiate with the man. He didn't speak English, and my Chinese was terrible” He laughs, “Anyway, you were born in our house. I had my equipment and even though I was terrified I had to deliver you in our own kitchen“

“Wait. Are you a doctor?”

“Yes, that’s what brought me to China, and then I met your mother. She was studying to be one”

Skye looks at Jiaying, who is just smiling wistfully at the story.

“We were so happy” He says “That night, I actually promised that I would always protect you” His voice breaks.

“Hey. You found me” Skye squeezes his hand and Cal looks back at Jiaying.

“We could still make up for the time we lost”

“Cal…”

“If you can’t let me in here then just come with us”

“You know that I can’t do that”

“Dad” Skye says, which seems to calm him down “I just want to enjoy dinner, let’s not think about anything else, okay?”

Cal nods “You’re right. You’re right. I’m sorry”

Skye, then, grabs her glass of wine “Let’s celebrate, that we’re here… and together, and I even know my name, that’s kind of amazing” she tries to joke.

“Let’s celebrate that,” Cal says.

 

* * *

 

 

She’s glad she got to steal a bottle to bring to her room after dinner. She definitely needed it.

Now she’s alone, she’s crying and she’s feeling like an idiot.

Her parents are a lot to take in, but they’re real, they want her, and this place is amazing. She actually made some progress, the bruises in her arms are fading quickly and she no longer feels like her body is going to tear apart from the inside.

Well, not her body, but her chest has that ugly, stupid feeling that just brings her back to Grant Ward. She knows that he’s still here, she asked Lincoln.

But she also knows what she has to do.

She’s not surprised to hear someone knocking on her door first. It takes a long sip of wine to go and open the door.

“Ok, let’s do this”

But it’s her mother.

“Oh, mom…”

“Hey. I just wanted to check on you”

“Come in” Skye says, going back to her bed “You mean after that dinner?”

“Dinner, or anything else you want to talk about” She sits next to Skye.

“I just have a lot of things in my mind, like the rules in this place” She says and then her mother grabs the bottle on the nightstand.

“I see”

Jiaying says and places her hand on Skye’s back, stroking softly and giving her a moment to decide if she wants to talk.

“Can we have mother and daughter time?” Skye finally says.

“That’s why I’m here”

She hesitates for a moment but then leans down to place her head on her mother’s lap. “I was crying for a guy, can you believe that?. That’s like the lamest thing that I’ve ever done in my life”

“I think you have a lot of things to figure out,” Jiaying says, playing with her daughter’s hair.

“I’ve got it all figured out, that’s kind of the problem”

“What happened with Grant?”

She sighs, “He’s just an- he’s an idiot. He’s always been an idiot, and you know, what makes me mad is that he thinks that I’m stupid enough not to see through all that BS that he told me so I would get mad and tell him to leave and then choose to stay”

“Wow… that’s…”

Skye sits up again “Complicated? That’s just us. I mean, I think the first thing that I have to do is stop pretending. I’m not… your little, nice girl. As much as I would like to believe that we can make up for all that time-“

Jiaying grabs her hand “I figured”

“I’m not perfect, like Cal said. I’m so messed up. Before we came here we actually murdered a bunch of Hydra leaders and stole all their money, we brainwashed a guy that I kinda…dated? He was Whitehall’s right hand; he deserved it. Anyway, that’s what we do. I met Grant because I was trying to seduce him so he would kill Whitehall for me or die if he failed. I just didn’t care, about anything…”

“I told you that we don’t judge the past here”

“I know, but I have to be honest with you about who I am. I mean it’s not like I want to go around killing puppies and stealing candy from the kids. I really want to move on and maybe be better”

Jiaying smiles and strokes her face softly “I understand, that’s the whole reason why I decided to do what I do, I don’t think that’s a bad thing, but you also have to be honest with yourself”

“Yeah, I know, but I just found you”

“And you’re never going to lose me again”

“There’s also the fact that Shield is after us and if they find this place… they would just find a way to ruin it. Now they’ve seen Gordon, and they know about me. You have a nice thing going here and it’s going to be my fa-“

“Hey. Calm down, okay? I don’t care about any of that, because you found me, so everything was worth it. We’re going to be fine. Shield will never find us"

Skye swallows “Mom…”

“You’ll always have a place in here, but you’re right about something. As much as your father and I want to think that you’re still our little girl, you’re not. You don’t have to apologize for what your heart truly wants”

“I hate him. You have no idea”

 "Then go tell him just how much you hate him” Jiaying jokes and Skye launches at her arms. This is more encouraging than the wine, but she’s still a bit scared.

Not like she has any doubts about what she’s going to do.

 

* * *

 

She storms inside his bedroom for the second time that day. He doesn’t even leave the bed.

She’s not saying anything.

“What?” Grant finally asks.

“First, I’m mad at you”

“You came here just to say that?”

“Shut up, Ward. I think you were right about me acting different, which isn’t necessary a bad thing. But I do want to move on… except that I still want to be me. That’s not the point. I’m fucking mad at you because you just said all that crap to make me stay here and it’s like you don’t even want to put up a fight? Really? I’m disappointed. You would just let me go?”

He finally stands up “This is what you deserve. A nice life, with your mother, I don’t fit in with any of that”

“I deserve what I want. That’s what we do remember? We take what we want, and what I want is you. And, anyway, you can’t just decide what’s best for me without even asking me first, that’s another thing that makes you an asshole”

“Skye…”

“Let me finish. I’m here to say something important. I’ve realized that want a nice, normal life, and I want good things, but I want to be me and I want you. That’s… everything that I just said so… I can’t-“ She stops, takes a deep breath and closes the distance between them so she can grab his arms. “Ok, just… don’t move” It’s like she’s setting him in place, touching his arms again. She takes a moment.

“Skye?”

“I love you. There, I said it. Because it’s so important for you to hear the actual words. You’re terrible, and I’m probably worse, but I love you and that’s what makes me want all those good things, the fact that I want them with you”

“Wow…”

“I know, wow” She puts her hands over her hips “I’m not done, I just needed to tell you that first”

He’s almost out of words “Okay…”

“I decided to stay”

He feels his throat go dry, but he doesn’t want to say anything. This is what he was preparing himself to hear, except that she’s looking at him like she needs him to say something “Is this a test? Do you want me to put up a fight?”

“YES! yes… I want to see you react like a normal, selfish person. We need to be us, so don’t take the high road and stop asking me to do what’s best because I want you to want me!” She says as she closes the distance between them even more, clutching his shirt “And just so you know I’m just staying for a couple of weeks”

“What?”

“I just wanted to add a little suspense. That’s my decision. I need to work on my… powers or whatever and figure out how to control it and take care of my body here, that’s all. I can always come back when I’m pissed at you to stay with my mom, though”

“That could be a lot of staying with your mom”

“I know, now can we just skip to the part were you do something about it?”

“I’m an idiot” He sighs, a bit relieved to be completely honest.

“Yeah, you are”

He finally starts smirking. He feels stupid, she’s right. How is that he wasn’t doing everything to keep her? He’s an asshole, she’s so right. He loves her. He wants her to be happy and it’s not like it’s easy for him to accept that he can be enough to make her happy. “Can you just say it again?”

She makes a complaining sound, “I love you”

He places his hands on her hips “So… don’t ever leave me. I’m going to do anything to be with you, and I’ll wait, and if you don’t come back to me I’m going to find this place and take you back. God it feels so much better to say this”

“And to hear it”

“Just a couple of weeks, right? I’m gonna be waiting. I’m gonna do anything to keep Shield off our trail and to keep this place safe” He says, cupping her face “I love you, I don’t think I have the strength to actually live without you”

She smiles “Okay, that’s a bit too corny”

A pause. She’s staring at him. He looks so relieved and his hands are not leaving her face, in fact, she can feel him pulling her closer.

“Do you want to-“

“Oh, God, I thought you were not going to ask” She says and jumps into his arms.

Grant is quick to catch her, wrapping her legs around his waist and spinning on his heels so he’s facing the bed.

Skye’s lips are on his, her arms bringing him closer, pressing her chest against his, not even realizing that he’s already lowering her on the bed until he’s completely over her.

She’s pulling on her sweater; he’s unbuckling his belt, all in a rush. With her eyes closed she can focus in the erratic sound of his breath, his heart beating faster, his skin trembling, probably imperceptibly for him, but she feels it all, his blood pressure changing, flowing down his body as he kisses his way down his neck.

She stops him, placing her hands on his chest and pushing him back.

“What?” Grant asks almost out of breath.

She bites her lower lip “Nothing, just take my pants off”

He doesn’t say anything; he leans down again, taking that lip with his teeth, pulling softly, and then kissing her again, rougher, with the need of a man that knows that he won’t see her in weeks, with a little fear, too. She might end up realizing that she doesn’t want to come back.

“You’re staring,” She says when he stops and looks down at her.

“I’m memorizing you, a couple of weeks sound like a long time” He says, moving his hand to her side, down to her leg.

She chuckles “Maybe you need more to memorize” She adds, reaching down to unbutton her jeans

Grant immediately catches the hint and helps her out of her clothes, making sure to touch every inch of naked skin. He kneels on the bed as he removes her shoes and jeans, and then gets rid of his own shirt.

He doesn’t stop until they’re both naked, and she’s lying on the bed before his eyes, the warm light in the room making her skin gleam in copper tones. He wastes no time in kissing it, starting on her hipbone, making her sigh softly.

“You’re such a tease” She complains, already aching at her core. She really, _really_ needs him to do something about it.

“I’m going to take my time” He grins, his stubble doing wonders for her as it scratches against her thigh.

“Are you going to eat me out? Because I’m not sure I can keep it together”

“Well, let’s put all that learning that you’ve been doing to good use” His grin grows even wider, almost wicked as he buries his face between her legs.

“Grant no, no!” She says, but she’s laughing, and definitely not doing anything to stop him “Oh, damn you!” She moans when his tongue circles around her clit.

“Okay, you can always tell me to stop” He says, spreading her legs further apart, making sure she can feel his breath as he speaks.

“Don’t you dare!” She says, reaching for his head, tangling her fingers in his thick hair.

Grant doesn’t say anything about her touching him like this. She’s clearly feeling more confident ever since they got here and the only thing that he has to do is keep her mind away from it, which is exactly what he does as he sucks on her, licks his way down her slit.

Skye brings one hand to her mouth, trying to muffler her cries, but the other is still firmly placed on the back of Grant’s head, keeping him in places as she rubs against his face. She knows he’s smiling, he’s smug and good with his tongue, and also… he’s Grant”

When he pushes two fingers inside her she screams his name, the room shakes slightly. That’s when she opens his eyes to see him, sees her fist pulling at his hair. She immediately removes her hand.

“You’re doing great” He reassures her.

“I know I’m feeling great”

Grant smiles, relieved, he feared for a second that she might freak out about her powers again. “Come on” He says, hooking his arms under her legs to flip her over him. “Grab the headboard”

She’s panting, but she nods, holds onto the wooden headboard and starts riding his face, her head falling back with a loud moan. She knows that it’s not going to take a lot more. Grant places his hands on her hips to keep her in place until she comes, dripping al over him, her whole body writhing in pleasure and the bed shakes again in perfect coordination with her.

“Damn it, Grant” She says, still panting and with her eyes closed.

“What?”

“My parents are here” She says and starts laughing, which makes Grant laugh too.

It still takes her a minute to actually move. She sits on his chest, trapping his arms with her legs. She, then, wipes his mouth and his chin with her hand.

“I love you” he says, no hesitation, but still a little fear.

“I can tell,” She teases trying to make him smile again, seeing right through him “I love you too”

She succeeds, and then starts sliding down his body, which has a completely new effect on him. He places his hands over her legs once they’re freed, but Skye keeps moving down, until she’s rubbing herself against his dick; she’s trying to drive him crazy.

She takes him in her hand “You know, this is going to be really awkward tomorrow anyway, so a few more quakes are not going to make a difference"

Then she place him at her entrance, slides all the way down until he’s fully inside her.

Grant is gripping her legs tighter, groaning as he feels her walls, still trembling, wrap around him. “God, I’m gonna miss you”

“It’ll be over before you know it” She says, although it comes out sounding like a moan as she starts moving.

 

* * *

 

 WEEKS LATER.

 

“Holy fuck, yes, Grant!!” She yells, clawing at his back, wrapping her legs tightly around his hips as he keeps pushing them forward, making her moan loudly with each powerful thrust.

He’s breathing right next to her ear, leaning into her embrace, the feel of her nails on his shoulders. She’s not afraid to touch him anymore, her hands go everywhere, pulling him closer; so close he can feel the way her whole body vibrates softly.

“God, and this bed is amazing!” She says.

“It’s like I’m fucking you in a cloud”

“I know right? Much better than… that dirty motel that- Oh my God!” She yells again when he picks up pace, angling his hips just the way she likes it, making her arch her back in pleasure, dig her nails deeper into his skin as she tries to keep up with his rhythm.

In his defense, it took her almost three weeks to come back, he was terrified, he needed her, and he was staying at a shitty motel room when Gordon brought her. He would have taken her right in the reception in front of everyone. They barely made it to his room; they probably heard them in the whole building.

“I want one… the mattress” She says.

“We’ll get one” Grant answers. He feels Skye’s hands moving down his back and grabbing his ass, pushing him harder.

He’s not going to keep this much longer. He moves his hands to her breasts, his mouth to her neck; he kisses all the way down her flushed chest, wraps his lips around her nipple and tears a scream out of her throat. He comes first, followed shortly by Skye, in such a sudden, strong way that makes him grunt loudly, burying his face against her neck. She can keep their orgasm going for so long, she makes every single cell in body shake with her.

“Fuck, Skye!” He moans.

She doesn’t say anything, only holds onto his arms, her whole body tense and arched against him as Grant stops moving slowly, sending a new wave of pleasure that makes her head spin.

“I’m getting better at this,” She finally says.

“God, yes” He’s still panting “You’re amazing”

She smiles and wraps her arms around his neck. “I don’t want to leave”

“We have to leave,” He says, tilting his head up, nuzzling her jaw. “The mansion is going to blow up in 20 minutes”

“Oh, excuse me, Mr. horny pants, but you dragged me in here in first place!”

Grant chuckles “My bad” He says and finally pulls out of her.

He didn’t even bother to take his pants and shoes off. He cleans himself with one of the white sheets.

“So classy” Skye says, sitting up, her legs are still a bit shaky as she watches Grant pull his pants up.

She wants him again.

“Wow” Grant starts, catching her attention “look at this place”

She looks around, at all the small cracks on the floor and the wall behind the bed. “I thought I didn’t-“

“I didn’t feel it either” Grant says.

“You think it was the mattress?” She asks, excitedly “Like, it absorbed the vibrations?”

“That is amazing”

“We’re definitely getting one” Skye says, getting out of the bed and walking to the bathroom “And the yacht, I can’t wait for you to make me quake in the ocean” She smirks at him and Grant slaps her ass playfully as she walks by.

 

* * *

 

“You look happy” Grant says while they walk out of the mansion to their small truck. He’s carrying a heavy duffel bag.

“I’m happy. I feel like we’re finally going in the right path, making a difference in the world”

“This is everything you wanted, turning a new leaf” He says and Skye grabs his hand.

“This money is really going to help my mom and the others at Afterlife”

Grant smiles, they stop right in front of the van’s back door. Grant opens “It’s also going to get us a new yacht”

The man is still just were they left him, tied, gagged and beaten.

“Hi, Gideon. Sorry for keeping you waiting but we got… distracted” Skye starts “You have a beautiful home by the way, it’s a shame that we’re going to blow it up”

Malick growls angrily and Grant throws the last duffel bag, hitting him again in the process, which makes Malick growl again, this time as if he was trying to say something.

Grant looks at Skye and she nods. He removes the tape from Gideon’s mouth, not very gently.

The man complains, “You can’t! What’s inside of my vault…”

“Oh you mean your weird black bricks of doom?. In my experience nothing good comes from Hydra messing around with weird stuff, and since I kinda don’t want the world to end for the moment, we left that”

“No! Our purpose, our legacy, you were created to serve him-“

“Ok that’s enough evil crazy guy monologue” Grant says, covering his mouth again. He closes the door and they both go to the front, getting inside the truck.

Skye is carrying her laptop.

“Did we get everything?” Grant says, starting the car.

“I wired everything. The guy was filthy rich. Already looking for yacht online”

Grant chuckles “We need to call Coulson”

“Just throw Malick in a dumpster and we’ll call him later”

“We agreed that we were going to deliver him personally”

“Are you really that naïve, babe?”

“Of course not. But I really wanted to see you quake his ass when he tried to get us” Grant says and starts the car.

“Let’s just go, we have like 2 minutes before the charges explode. And I can’t wait to fuck you in the ocean"

"You told Cal that we were going to visit"

Skye makes a complaining groan "Right. Ok, first Milwaukee, but then every European shore. Isn’t it romantic? It’s a brave new world Mr. Johnson”

“You know we could always make the marriage thing real”

“Drive” She tells him, grabbing his leg “And we’ll see”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there! We've finally reached the end. I couldn't finish it without a literal bang hahaha It has a happy ending! Tell me what you think about about it. Even if you haven't been commenting, if you are here, I encourage you to give me all your final thoughts, and thank you for reading! This story was so much fun and I'm happy that they're kinda de same assholes at the end but they care about stuff now, maybe don't want to watch the world burn... they're such nice people, don't you think? hahaha that's progress. Thanks again for reading the whole thing.


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